Endgame
by The Real JL Rules
Summary: Sixth and final part in a series. It has been twenty linear years since Missy stole Clara from Amy. But when a stranger arrives with startling news, everything is up in the air. Will Amy and Clara be reunited? Will the Doctor come new-face-to-new-face with the Mistress? And just what are the mysterious glowing cracks... ? Updates every weekday!MENTIONS OF ATTEMPTED SUICIDE WARNING.
1. Chapter 1

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. IMPORTANT (A): As with my previous _DW_ stories, there's a very big canon conceit here, aside from the obvious romantic couplings. Namely, Amy never left. She was around for Clara's arrival, all through the Eleventh Doctor's tenure, and his regeneration into the Twelfth. Got that? Cool.  
_

_4\. IMPORTANT (B): This is the sixth and final instalment of the Amy/Clara/Missy series__ I don't like to be one of those who insists you read my other stuff, but events in this story directly follow on from those in previous instalments. To get the full story (so to speak), I do recommend you read "Venusian Valentine's", "Crossroads", "The Second Clara?", "The Girl Who Could Wait No More" and "Out of Reach" (in that order), before this, otherwise you might find things even MORE confusing._

_5\. THASMIN fans here only for Thirteen/Yaz will be ESPECIALLY baffled if this is the only piece you read. I really hope you do look at the entire series. I'm very much a spoiler baby, and would hate for you to have things ruined by only reading this. I put alot of work into this overall narrative, and I really think you'll like it. Honest - I wouldn't lie to you!_

_6\. The Missy in this story (and in "Out of Reach") is her second incarnation (as the Mistress). To visualise her, I had in mind post-_X Files_ Gillian Anderson._

_7\. **STORY WARNING:** There's a major, and I mean MAJOR, canon divergence with a certain character in this story. I just hope you can accept my take on things, though I understand if you can't._

_8\. **TRIGGER WARNING:** There's references to attempted suicide in this. _

_9\. This will be my first - and probably only - story presented in DAILY CHAPTERS (well, weekdaily)._

_10\. On a final note, I know this opening is mega-short, but hopefully I make up for it as the story unfolds. Famous last words, eh?_

* * *

PART 1

A flash of light, and she was there.

Taking a quick intake of breath, she blinked. She really hated travelling like this. It was so much easier in a TARDIS, but needs must, and she was stuck using a blasted vortex manipulator. Still, should not grumble and all that. Besides, she had more important things to deal with.

Like right now, figuring out where - and when - she was. She looked around, taking in her surroundings. Seemed a bog-standard warehouse; those were depressingly similar no matter the place or time. Probably disused, judging by the dust, cobwebs and lack of lighting.

No electricity - if it was not for the moonlight through the windows, she would be in pitch black - only made the glowing in the corner all the more noticeable. She grit her teeth. "Dammit." Not one of these again. She was hoping she _finally_ jumped to someplace/time she _desperately_ needed to be, but no. Instead she was faced with yet another of _these_ damn things.

Striding over to it, she got out her sonic trowel from her backpack and pointed it at the crack in the dark corner of the warehouse.

The glowing, golden crack...

She stood there for several minutes, as the sonic struggled to do its work. "Come on... come on... " This was getting harder to do. With every crack she found, it took longer and used up more of her patience. She had _more important_ things to do - sure, it was the fate of the universe, but it was _personal_ too...

Not only that, but the cracks were now appearing without even anyone around to "feed" them, which was _definitely_ not good.

Eventually, the crack faded and sealed. She breathed a sigh of relief and decided to look around outside. However, once she reached the cold nighttime street, she sighed in frustration - unable to see, hear or telepathically sense anything. She closed her eyes briefly, but refused to give into despair. She _would_ succeed. She refused to even die trying. She _would_ find her parents, and help fix everything.

Activating her vortex manipulator, she prayed it would finally take her back to them. She then disappeared in another flash of light, leaving the street empty of life...

TO BE CONTINUED


	2. Chapter 2

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1.  
_

* * *

PART 2

"_Happy anniversary_!"

The two women were shocked awake by the multi-voice announcement and bolted up in bed, the younger of the two barely managing to raise the sheets up in time. "Wh... wha... ?"

"What the hell is the meaning of... ?!" roared the other, but her voice stopped at the sight greeting her eyes. Five young people, of various ages, standing at the foot of the bed, huge smiles on their faces and gifts in their hands.

Fully awake, Clara Masters-Oswald's heart threatened to burst. Their darling children were here to celebrate their parents' anniversary! "Oh, my angels," she said lovingly, while surreptitiously reaching for her nightie, discarded the night before. "Just gimme a sec and then come and give us a hug."

Her wife, the Mistress, AKA Missy, frowned at her, as if to say _Us?_, but then folded her arms across her own sheet-covered chest. "Well, I guess we must congratulate you on your impeccable timekeeping. It's.. " - she glanced at the clock - "... 7am and you're all awake. That in itself is a miracle."

The two youngest - Jenna and Cole - already hopped onto the bed and were kneeling by their mothers' feet. The middle children, Michelle and Gomez, moved to the sides, while the eldest, Delgado, stayed at the foot of the bed. "I tried to talk them out of it," he shrugged, "but they insisted on getting you up as soon as possible."

"Happy twentieth anniversary, Mumma and Mummy!" said Cole excitedly.

"Thank you very much, sweetheart," said Clara, now adequately covered. She held out her arms and two sub-ten-year-olds flew into her arms. "It wouldn't be half as special without all of you." Michelle crammed in for a four-way hug.

Missy raised a brow, but still reached out and accepted an embrace from Gomez to her side, then Delgado when he made his way over. All the Masters-Oswald children were aware their Gallifreyan mother was not the _most_ affectionate person, so knew better than to try a massive group cuddle with her. Clara, on he other hand, squeezed her babies tight. "We love you all very much."

Over the next few minutes, more hugs were exchanged - Missy's always one-at-a-time - and presents given. Eventually, Delgado managed to corral his siblings away, leaving their parents to get dressed and ready for the day ahead, though not before Missy promised to take them somewhere exciting. Now alone, the Time Lady tutted. "Guess out goes my plan for an early anniversary shag."

Clara choked as she got out of bed. "Romantic as ever," she drawled. She sat down infront of the mirror.

Chuckling, Missy rose herself, took a moment to smooth her own nightie, then walked over to her wife. Looking at her through the mirror, she ducked down and lovingly kissed a bare neck, resulting in - as it always did - Clara closing her eyes in pleasure. "In all seriousness," the Gallifreyan whispered, "happy anniversary, my darling."

Clara moaned as a shiver went down her back. "Ha... happy anniv... anniversary... "

Missy blew slowly on the kisses left on the Human's neck. "Thank you for giving me the best twenty years of my lives."

Those words almost brought tears to Clara's eyes. She craned her neck to look Missy in the eyes. "I love y... "

She was stopped by Missy's lips crashing into hers. Clara moaned as her wife dove her tongue down her throat, then almost violently pulled her up from her chair and moved her back to the bed. The two fell down onto the mattress, Missy already moving Clara's nightie up.

"M... Mi... " The former teacher managed to prise her mouth from her spouse's. "The children are waiting... you said we'd take them some..."

"I never said _when_ we were leaving," Missy replied breathily. "It's _our_ day, not theirs. I need you - _now_." With that, the Time Lady hungrily claimed Clara's lips again, and literally tore her nightie away...

TO BE CONTINUED


	3. Chapter 3

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1.  
_

_4\. In this chapter, there's a somewhat-obscure reference to a previous story in this series, _Out of Reach_._

* * *

PART 3

"Here it is, fam - London, 1965!"

The Doctor held out her hands at her proclamation, as she often did when the TARDIS landed where they wished.

Graham O'Brien took in the surroundings as he exited the blue box third - a certain someone _else_ always being right behind the Time Lady - and smiled. "Still don't see why we couldn't go to Sheffield."

The Time Lady frowned. "I told you, Graham, I'm not takin' you to your own histories anymore. I thought we all learnt that could end in disaster." She glanced over at the young woman by her side, a look of accusation on her face.

Yasmin Khan - the one who left the time machine second, unsurprising as she never liked being more than an arm's length from the Gallifreyan - held up her hands. "Hey, don't look at me! _I_ certainly learnt me lesson. And 'ow many times did I apologise? Besides, I also learnt not to annoy a Time Lady." Yaz used the Doctor's title often: it just sounded so _sexy_.

The Doctor's face softened and she brushed a hand against Yaz's arm. "I know. Sorry." That did not mean the Gallifreyan was about to change her mind:

Graham wished to revisit a particular festive season when he was five years old and his family took him to meet Father Christmas in Sheffield, but the Doctor was having none of it. Not after what they risked in 1947 Punjab: namely, the deletion of Yaz from history. However, both Graham and Ryan theorised if the policewoman batted her eyes and asked for something similar, the Doctor would again cave. Graham still inwardly chuckled at the Doctor's comment at the time of being "too nice" to refuse: he and Ryan surmised the Time Lady was "too" something else when it came to Yaz...

Ryan gazed at the surroundings and the people around them, specifically the women. "This ain't what I was expectin'. I didn't think there were so many flared collars or trousers in the '60s."

The rest of Team TARDIS looked around, then the Doctor scrunched her face. "Oh cheese and crackers. Not again."

"What is it, Doctor?" asked Yaz.

"'Ang on." The Gallifreyan waved her sonic around, then looked at the results. "Right. Time for the apologies again. This is 1975, not '65."

"You're kiddin'?" Graham rolled his eyes. "Doc, be honest - do you actually 'ave any control over that thing?" He pointed to the police box.

"Oi!" yelped the Time Lady. "First off, she's not a 'thing', she's a living being. Second off, it's not about _control_. The old girl always gets me to where I need t'be."

"It nearly always takes us somewhere weird," moaned Ryan. "Like that planet with the marketplace."

Yaz raised a brow. "Yeah, marketplaces are _so_ weird... "

"I remember you tellin' us how unusual it was for the TARDIS to take you somewhere where you didn't need to fix somethin'," continued Graham, ignoring Yaz's sarcasm.

The Doctor scrunched again. "Hey, Ryan got a picture out of it, didn't he? But nevermind that - look." She pointed down the road. "See - there's the buildin' that'll become part of the Imperial War Museum in a few years. That's cool, innit? Not that war is cool, I just... "

"I got a what?" said Ryan, interrupting the Doctor's reference to Churchill's War Rooms.

"Y'know, that street artist," Yaz said. "Remember - we found a stall that did drawings and we got a group picture." She tried not to recall how well the artist captured her anxiety at sitting so close to the woman of her dreams.

Ryan blinked. "... no, I don't."

Graham looked at him. "Son, it's hangin' up on our wall."

Ryan seemed utterly confused. "Guys, I honestly don't know what you're talkin' 'bout."

The Doctor's eyes narrowed. "Ryan... are you feeling OK?" Before the lad could respond, a slight buzzing noise cut in. The Time Lady again observed her sonic. "There's a disturbance... fifty feet from us." With that, she strode off, her team quickly following.

"Is that thing now a weirdness detector?" said Graham, referring to the Doctor's so-called screwdriver.

"Modified it the other day," said the Doctor distractedly, her eyes not leaving the device. "It can now detect disturbances on its own and hone in on 'em. Took hours to do, mind. Didn't Yaz tell you? She was with me the entire time."

Ryan leaned close to his stepgranddad. "That's a shocker," he said quietly - though not quietly enough to avoid a glare from Yaz. Even if it was blunted somewhat by the blush on her cheeks...

They reached an alleyway by a pub, and the Doctor stopped. "The disturbance is comin' from here," she said seriously. Which lasted about a nanosecond, as she spun on her heel to face her friends. "Isn't this excitin'?! In your nose, Graham! Told you the TARDIS knows what she's doin'!" The target of her boast, rather than being put in his place, just laughed.

"So what is it, Doctor?" asked Yaz. There seemed to be somekind of glow on the brickwork. Shaped like a...

"Looks like a crack t'me," Graham mused.

Ryan shook his head. "Don't look like any brick crack I've ever seen."

The Doctor scanned the glowing area with her sonic, then looked at the results. "This... can't be possible."

Yaz leaned over her shoulder. "What can't?"

The Time Lady inspected the crack further. "This seems to be a tear in the very fabric of the space/time continuum... but that's impossible." She then shook her head. "Well, not completely impossible. I've probably come across somethin' like that before." She gave her entire attention back to the current phenomenon. "But not like this."

"Is it safe?" Yaz asked.

"Space and time bein' torn? I'd say probably not!"

"Right you are, Graham," said the Doctor. She turned fully back to them. "From what I can gather, it's pulling energy out of the universe - kinda like if you breach the hull of a spaceship, and all the air gets sucked out. Or is that 'blown' out?"

"Either way, it's bad, right?"

"Very bad, Yaz," replied the Gallifreyan. "We need to get to the bottom of this. As it's attached to this building, we'll start here - see if it's effecting the interior. This whole building might even be a front, can't rule it out. C'mon, fam." The Doctor always used that term now, ever since Yaz said she liked it...

With that, they went to enter the pub itself. Despite the situation, the Doctor's mood turned back on a dime as she saw its billboard. "The Royal Oak. That's a sweet name... "

TO BE CONTINUED


	4. Chapter 4

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 4

Team TARDIS entered the pub and the Doctor immediately went to the area where, on the other side, the glowing crack was. None of her companions paid any notice to the looks they garnered for their peculiar, non-drink-ordering actions.

The Doctor frowned at the plain wall. "Huh. Nothin'. Though to be honest, I didn't know what t'expect. To be even honest'er, it would've been even weirder if the crack just led to inside 'ere."

"Why would that be 'weirder'?" asked Yaz, always the enquisitive one. Or, as Graham and Ryan often wondered, she just wanted to hear the Time Lady's voice.

"The sonic showed space and time were being pulled into the crack into... somewhere even it couldn't scan," the Doctor explained. "The sonic would've picked up if it just led back to inside 'ere."

"So we came in 'ere for no reason," smirked Graham. "Doc, did you just wanna come in for a pint?"

"Alcohol has no effect on me, Graham," replied the alien. "Not Earth alcohol, anyway. 'Least, I don't think so. Can't remember the last time I was drunk, to be honester'er."

"Y'sound drunk already," grinned Ryan.

The Gallifreyan frowned. "I'm just speakin' normally."

"Exa... "

"_Look_," Yaz intercepted. "Why don't we ask the woman behind the bar if she's seen anythin' unusual?" She noticed said woman eyeing them suspiciously.

"Great idea, Yaz!" the Doctor beamed. "100 points t'you!" Her points system was so out of whack it was comical...

With that, Team TARDIS approached the bar. "'Ello there, landlady or barmaid or waitress!" grinned the Doctor. "How are you this fine mornin' or afternoon or early evenin'?"

The woman behind the bar narrowed her eyes. "Landlady." There was no fun in her Scottish accent nor, the Doctor noticed, joy in her eyes - _at all_. Truth be told, the woman looked familiar, but the Doctor could not place her. She appeared a little past middle-age for a Human, with wrinkles on her face, though hair red as fire, not a trace of grey. "What can I get you?" the landlady asked, again almost monotone.

"Actually, we were wonderin' if you could tell us if you've noticed anythin' weird around 'ere," the Doctor said. She furrowed her brow: there was something about this woman...

"No," came the simple, cold reply, as the landlady proceeded to clean a glass. "Now what are you having?"

The Time Lady blinked at the curtness, and briefly glanced at her team, who looked equally stymied. "Maybe it would help if we introduced ourselves. I'm the Doctor, and this... "

The smash from the glass hitting the floor was like a foghorn in the quiet pub.

Everyone was taken aback, none more so than the landlady. The Doctor stared wide-eyed as the woman glared back at her. The woman's lip was actually trembling. "Hey," said the Time Lady, hand reaching out, "are you al... "

Then their hands met...

And the Doctor was engulfed in a flood of images.

A little girl in a nighttime garden. Drawings of a thin, raggady man. A fiery redhead in a police uniform. A white nightie on a Union Jack-branded ship. Being pulled underground. A pirate's outfit. An opened door at Christmas. Shackled and tortured. And so much more...

And with that, the Doctor collapsed...

TO BE CONTINUED


	5. Chapter 5

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 5

The pub was suddenly full of noise and commotion. And most of it was coming from one Yasmin Khan. "Doctor! _Doctor_!"

The policewoman barely managed to catch the falling Time Lady in her arms, so sudden was the change in state. One moment the Doctor was upright, the next, collapsing like a sack of spuds. It did not help that she was heavier than she looked.

But Yaz's physical discomfort was nothing compared to her emotional. Seeing the woman she cherished more than anyone else suddenly fall made Yaz's heart feel faint too. Holding the Doctor in her arms, with Graham and Ryan lowering themselves to her level to check on her, Yaz darted her head up at the woman behind the bar. "What the hell have you _done to her_?!"

In her panicked state, Yaz could not even comprehend the fact the landlady appeared in almost as bad a shape as the Gallifreyan. She was holding her head, a sharp grimace on her face. Meanwhile, all eyes on the pub were now on them. Yaz returned her attention to the fallen woman in her embrace. "Doctor, please... talk to me." Perhaps later, the officer would reprimand herself for losing her cool - it was one of the first things the force taught to control, after all - but right at the moment, _all_ she cared about was the welfare of the woman she secretly loved. Professionalism be damned.

"Who are you?!" demanded Ryan, glancing at the barwoman. He got no reply. Instead the landlady just glared back at them, body now trembling along with her lip.

Graham - as always - was the only somewhat-calm voice. "Doc, can you hear me?" The Doctor responded with mutters and mumbles, though one word was intelligible. Made no sense though, given the situation. Why would _pond_ be relevant?

"Y... you... called her... " Team TARDIS collectively looked at the landlady. "... the... Do... " A single tear ran down her face.

"OK... m'... m'OK... " Yaz breathed a sigh of relief as beautiful hazel eyes fluttered open. The Doctor took slow, deep breaths, blinking rapidly. She stumbled back to her feet, her friends guiding her. "I'm OK... " She then looked up and locked eyes on the woman behind the bar. "Oh my God... "

To Yaz's shock, the Doctor actually shrugged herself away from her arms, paying none of her team heed. Her gaze never left the landlady. "Oh God... I... I remember... I _remember_... " Tears started running down her own cheeks. "_Amy_." The name was said with such reverence it actually awed Yaz, Graham and Ryan. "Oh God, _Amy_... !" The Doctor reached out and stroked a crying face. "It... it's actually you. I remember. I remember _everything_."

Team TARDIS - Yaz in particular - was stunned into silence.

"Let me look at you... " the Doctor gasped. She stroked the woman's face adoringly, like she was the most important thing in the universe. "My dear, dear Amelia... "

The landlady just choked in disbelief, unable to speak.

The Doctor closed her eyes in pain. "What happened? What... how did you end up here?" She then shook her head and looked the woman dead in the eye. "No. No. Doesn't matter. Not now. All that matters is getting you out of here. Getting you back to... " Her jaw then dropped. "Oh my _God_! _CLARA_! We... I left her on that... that planet! I've gotta get her back!" The Doctor then forcefully raised the bar's partitian flap and all-but yanked the landlady out. "We're leaving," the Time Lady said. "Right now."

Somehow Yaz found her voice. "But Doctor... whatabout the glowing crack?"

"That can wait," came the sharp reply.

"But Doctor... "

"Yaz, _not now_!" Yaz's eyes widened and her breath caught: the Doctor _never_ spoke to her like that. Graham and Ryan's expressions matched the policewoman's. Before anything else could be said, the Doctor marched out the bar, dragging this "Amy" behind her. Practically throwing the door aside, the Time Lady and her still-stunned luggage were quickly outside, Team TARDIS almost struggling to keep up.

The Doctor walked with sheer determination to her destination, then felt a pull and stopped - Amy had stopped dead on the spot. The Doctor looked back at her, to see her crying intensify. Amy was now openly sobbing. "Oh God... it can't be... "

Because what Amy saw was the TARDIS.

The Doctor tenderly tugged the hand in hers. "It's OK, it's OK... "

Amy then turned to her. "It... it can't be you... "

"It is," the Doctor breathed. "How can I... OK, howabout... when we met, you asked if I was a policeman. Or when you asked me if everyone was a ghost to me. Or when Clara first joined us, and you were actually jealous, and refused to speak to her for a week."

Amy just stared at her, tears running.

"Or when Clara proposed to you," whispered the Time Lady. "And she said she loved you, and you were the only person who would ever hear her say that." She paused. "Well, 'cept me, as I later admitted to eavesdropping." A slight smile. "Clara was a little angry 'bout that."

The woman took a deep gulp. "Raggady man... ?"

The Doctor tried suppressing a sob herself, and might have failed. "C'mon, everything will be alright now. I'll take you home."

Yaz, Ryan and Graham just shared a look of bewilderment. Clearly this woman meant _alot_ to the Doctor. They followed as the pair made it to the police box. Amy paused again and actually reached out with her free hand, shakily touching the blue door, as if not quite believing it was there.

Eventually they were all inside, and Amy just stared at her surroundings. But Yaz could tell it was not a look of wonder: no, this was different. "I can't believe... I... I never thought... " Amy was now crying uncontrollably. "... I'd... ever see... " With that, she buried her face in her hands, and to Team TARDIS' shock, the Doctor enveloped her in a deep embrace.

"Sshhh, it's alright," the Time Lady whispered. "Everything will be alright now... "

For along time, the only sounds in the control room were the muffled tears of a lost woman, finally found...

TO BE CONTINUED


	6. Chapter 6

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 6

"Are you _serious_?!"

Missy frowned at her wife's eyes whispered outburst. "I'm always serious, Clara... except when I'm not." She cheekily grinned. Their offspring were several yards away, unable to hear their parents' latest "disagreement".

Clara narrowed her own orbs. "Our anniversary... you promise to take us somewhere special... and you pick _1938 Berlin_?" She blinked in disbelief. "Are you _insane_?"

The Time Lady smirked. "Not anymore, thanks to you. And think of this as a... learning experience. A history lesson. You should be able to appreciate that, poppet. You were a teacher, after all."

Clara just glared at her. She knew the Mistress was eccentric, aloof at times, even occasionally cold still, but she thought their twenty years together dulled the Gallifreyan's darker tendencies. But if _this_ was her idea of a good time... !

"I can tell what you're thinking, Clara, and you have it all wrong," Missy said. "Once again you wound me for thinking I'm still the same monster you first met. How long will it take for you to trust me, Clara - _another_ twenty years? A hundred? A thousand?"

Clara clenched her jaw, guilt biting at her heart. "I _do_ trust you, Missy. But you're going to have to _explain_ this one. What possible reason could you have for bringing us here... for showing our children this?" Indeed, Missy brought them to the very door of the Reich Chancellery. Headquartres of the Nazis. The personal office of Adolf Hitler.

Sighing, Missy took a moment before speaking. "I'm sorry, Clara. I know I shouldn't have questioned your devotion. You already gave me more than I ever deserve. You literally saved me from a path which could only end in pain and disaster. You showed me the error of my ways, and made me a better person. The person who wants nothing more now than to love you and be loved by you."

Despite her anger, Clara could not help the gooey feeling in her heart.

"And it's only right that we pass on that goodness to our children," continued the Time Lady. "But sometimes, to prove the light, we have to show the dark. We have to show them a little bit of the evil that went on here, the evil _I_ used to be... to ensure they never follow that same path."

Clara's eyes watered. "Really?"

"Of course," Missy soothed. "I want our angels to see how doing wrong is... wrong." She gave a tender stroke to her young wife's cheek. "We can tell them and teach them all we want - and you do a wonderful job of that, my poppet - but sometimes, they have to see for themselves."

Clara shook her head. "But Missy... this is too dangerous. This is just a year before the start of the worst war in Earth history, and... "

"This is nothing compared to wars to come, Clara," interrupted the Time Lady. "Didn't _he_ ever tell you that? Before he abandoned you, I mean."

The Impossible Girl shivered at the reminder. Not a day went by she did not think of the Doctor leaving her on that unknown planet. Pregnant and alone. If it was not for Missy... "Look... " she began, shaking her old memories away for now. "I know you mean well, but this is too big a risk. What if something happens to them? I could never forgive myself." She raised her chin slightly. "Or you."

At that, Missy fell silent. Clara wondered if she pushed too far: not that she feared her wife in anyway, for those days were long gone, but the Time Lady could get rather distant in her current form, as opposed to the Missy Clara met, who would just shout and scream. More than once the Human got the cold shoulder treatment for daring to question the Time Lady's "wisdom".

"You're right," Missy eventually breathed, a look of realisation on her face. "Of course you're right. You always are. I'm sorry, my angel. How could I have been so foolish? We'll leave imme... "

"Mumma, what's this?"

Clara and Missy turned at Gomez's voice, to see their five children crowded around something. Clara instantly tensed: did they stumble on something dangerous? A gun? A _grenade_? Granted, such things would not usually just be laying about, but forgive the ex-teacher for being a tad nervous when in Nazi Germany.

The two adults strode over to the little ones and saw what they were huddled around. Both frowned at the sight. On an outside wall of the Reich Chancellery, was something very odd indeed. A crack in the brickwork, but not just any ordinary crack...

"What is it, Mumma?" little Cole asked. "Why is it glowin'?"

Missy spread her arms and Clara, taking the hint, gently pulled Jenna and Cole a few steps back, nodding at Delgado to do the same with Michelle and Gomez. The Time Lady then pulled her sonic scalpel - far less cumbersome than her old umbrella - from her smart suit jacket and scanned the phenomenon. "Very interesting... "

Clara watched with consternation; eventually, she could take no more. "What is it?" she asked, mirroring their youngest child's question.

"This is most perculiar," came the reply. "Seems to be some type of tear in reality. How very... interesting... "

"What does that mean?" came Jenna's small voice.

"It means we're leaving," said Clara sternly. "Right now."

Missy turned back to them. "Clara, we can't leave now. We have to find out what this is. It could be... "

"... _dangerous_," the Human finished. In the back of her mind Clara could not help but notice the irony: in the past, it was _she_ insisting on exploring and taking risks. But that was before she became a mother. Now, all she was interested in was keeping her babies safe. "I'm taking the children back to the TARDIS."

Missy grumbled. "Fine. I'll be in in a few minutes."

"No. You'll come in now. I'm not going to risk losing my wife on our anniversary." Then the puppy eyes came out full force. "You _did_ agree to us leaving, Missy."

As always, the Gallifreyan caved. "You're right, of course. Again." That said, she gave one last - conflicted? - look at the building, before putting her scalpel away. "I suppose we can come back later. We have a time machine, after... "

"_Halt_! _Identify yourselves_!"

The entire Masters-Oswald clan startled at the sudden, sharp voices. There, just a few yards from them, were two Nazi soldiers, pointing their rifles right at them...

TO BE CONTINUED


	7. Chapter 7

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 7

"We said _identify yourselves_!"

Clara audibly gulped as she reluctantly kept her hands in the air, the rest of her family doing likewise. What she _really_ wanted to do was pull as many of her children as possible to her, and ferry them back to the safety of their TARDIS, with her wife doing the same for whatever children Clara could not grab. Instead, they were all frozen on the spot, being held up at Nazi gunpoint.

Missy narrowed her eyes at the two soldiers before them. "Actually pointing your weapons at children," she said cooly. "How... dispicable." However, was it was Clara's imagination, or was there actually a look of _admiration_ on the Time Lady's face... ?!

"If you do not tell us who you are we will kill you," said one of the soldiers, his German tongue being instantly translated by their nearby time machine, as all foreign and alien languages were.

"I knew I should've taken that psychic paper when I had the chance," Missy muttered.

Clara began breathing heavy; she could sense the fear pouring from her children, particularly the youngest ones. "Missy, can you stop being you for one moment and just knock them out?!"

"Oh, I'll do better than that," seethed the Time Lady. Those words sent a further chill down Clara's spine. She reasoned it must have been because the men were threatening their babies: Missy long ago promised not to kill in cold blood. The scary part was, part of Clara actually wanted her wife to do it. Anything to keep the children safe.

"Mummy... I'm scared... " came Cole's tiny voice.

Clara somehow found her nerve. "Don't worry, baby - Mumma will save us." In the back of her mind the Human knew if, heaven forbid, the children were fired upon, they would likely regenerate: they were, after all, half-Gallifreyan. Heck, Clara herself had the ability, thanks to some miracle discovered by Missy. Indeed, the Impossible Girl was actually in her _third_ "life", having recently regenerated for a second time following an encounter with a not-so-normal raven. The upshot was, eventhough she was would actually be 49 on her next birthday, she was physically 32.

But that was not the point. The fact was guns were being pointed at her children. And, despite how sick it made Clara feel, part of her just wanted her wife to do away with the men pointing them.

"With all due respect," said the Time Lady, "... which of course is none... I suggest you get those peashooters out of our faces, before I do something we'll all regret." Out the corner of her eye, Clara could see her wife already tensing to reach for her sonic pistol, a new "accessory" for this second Missy.

"_We_ make the orders here!" yelled one of the soldiers. That resulted in more whimpering from the children, which made Clara's blood boil. "You have failed to identify yourselves, so prepare to... "

"Wait!" parked the other soldier. He motioned with his rifle the glow behind the Masters-Oswalds. "What's that? Somekind of weapon?"

Missy glanced behind her at the golden crack in the wall. "Ooh, look at that, Clara - isn't it shiny?" Clara inwardly groaned: _great_ time to play the fool, Missy! "Must be the only bright area of Berlin, apart from the explosions. Well, those won't really start for another year, but when they do... !"

"_Silence_!" The soldiers advanced, resulting in audible sobbing from the little ones. "We will take you to the Fuhrer himself, and he will make sure you talk."

"Ah, ol' Adolf," mused Missy. "He still owes me a few deutchmarks."

The next words out of the other soldier was a surprise to everyone. "Who are you talking about, frauleine?"

"Married, actually." The Time Lady cocked her head. "And I talk of your glorious leader, Adolf Hitler. Him with the silly 'tashe and comb-over."

"You're saying these things to confuse us! We know of no man by that name!"

The first solider frowned at his compatriot. "Are you serious?"

"I was _sure_ this was Nazi time," Missy whispered.

Clara almost rolled her eyes. "The swastikas are a bit of a giveaway," she said, referring to all the nearby signage and armbands on the soldiers' uniforms.

Suddenly, a burst of light erupted between the time-travelling family and soldiers, and almost in the blink of an eye, a figure appeared. A woman. Everyone was again stunned into silence.

Looking up, the newcomer - with an odd dress sense and wearing a hefty backpack - looked around, then locked eyes on Clara. "Oh my God... I've found you. I've actually _found_ you!" Before anything else could be said or done, she dashed to the Impossible Girl and grabbed her hand.

The last thing Clara heard was Missy shouting her name... then everything went white.

For another instant. Because almost as quickly, the white light was gone and both Clara and the unknown woman were somewhere else entirely. It took only seconds for Clara to realise they had been transported away, and a glance at the woman's wrist confirmed it. A vortex manipulator.

There was a moment of silence, as Clara felt the stranger's eyes on her. "I can't believe it... I've found you... I've _finally_ found you... " The woman spoke with utter reverence - and were those _tears_ in her eyes?

Being revered was not what Clara wanted, however. Clenched her jaw, she wrenched her hand from the stranger's and, with the other, actually struck her as hard as possible. "What have you done?! Who are you - where have you taken me?!"

The woman backpeddled and nearly fell to the floor. However, she managed to right herself, though held her chin in pain. "_Ow_! Bloody hell!"

"Take me back, _NOW_!" Clara bellowed. She had to get back to her family, make sure they were safe...

"Mum, please!" the stranger said. "I can expla... "

"_What_ did you call me?" snapped the Impossible Girl. She eyed the young woman curiously. Was she a future version of one of her daughters? Judging by her skin colour, probably not. Then again, if Gallifreyans can change gender, why not ethnicity? "Michelle? Jenna?"

A look of disgust crossed the stranger's face. "No, I'm not one of your offspring with _her_. I think I'd kill myself if I was." She sighed and raised her hands in supplication. "Look, I know this is all very confusing, but I can explain. I _am_ your daughter, but... well... "

"Who _are_ you?" Clara's tone was back to demanding.

The woman sighed and took a deep breath. "My name is Melody. Melody Oswald-Pond."

TO BE CONTINUED


	8. Chapter 8

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

_4\. **TRIGGER WARNING:** Mentions of attempted suicide in this chapter._

* * *

PART 8

Brown eyes slowly opened and saw bright lights. As the woman fully came to, she could hear a mild humming, barely background noise. And she could feel soft, comfy support underneath her. Far comfier than she had felt in decades.

Amy Pond gingerly raised her head and blinked at the sight before her. There, at the foot of the bed, was a blonde-haired woman with a stripey top, suspenders and big greyish coat. Her hands were behind her back, and she seemed rather nervous.

"You're awake," the stranger said. "How are you feeling?"

Like that, the commotion in her bar all came back to Amy. This was apparently not a stranger. This was... "Doctor... ?" she whispered.

A warm, soft smile. "Yes, Amy. It's me. I promise."

The Scot could not believe it. She raised herself on her elbows and looked around. Similar brownish-goldish walls. Bright, almost ethereal lights. It was not exactly as she remembered, but this was unmistakably the TARDIS medibay. Her breath threatening to stop, she turned back to the woman.

"You and Clara often betted if this would ever happen," she shrugged, motioning to her own body. "Guess she won."

Amy just glared at her. "How... ?"

"Like I always used t'say, it's a lottery." The Doctor cautiously approached the side of the bed. "Now how are you feeling? I guess it was all a little too much for you, seeing as you passed out in my arms. 'Eck, I nearly passed out myself. Don't think I've had such a strong touch-telepathic moment."

Amy just continued staring.

The Time Lady's face fell. "It _is_ me, Amy, I swear. Look... " She then picked up a box Amy had not even noticed was on the chair next to her bedside. "I had a feelin' you'd need further convincin', soooooo... " The Doctor reached into the box and pulled out a fez. "Remember this? Or 'owabout... " - another item - "... this?" A loose bowtie. "Oooorrrr... these?" Sunglasses. "Or maybe... "

"OK, I get it," Amy said tiredly. The Doctor stopped her show-and-tell and the two locked eyes. Amy gulped. She finally accepted the situation - the throbbing in her head was too real for this to be a dream, after all. This woman truly was her "Raggady Man", reborn yet again.

With that thought, Amy closed her eyes in pain.

"What happened, Amy?" the Doctor asked gently, putting the box down. "The last thing... "

"36 years."

The Gallifreyan blinked at the interruption. "What?"

Amy opened her eyes again and fixed a steely glare on the Doctor. "36 years. I was stranded there for _36 years_. Lost. Alone. I waited for you to come for me. I waited and you never came."

The Doctor's face was now one of pure pain. "Oh Amy... I'm so sorry... I... "

"That bitch took me from Clara and _left_ me at the start of the war." Amy's voice was raising. "I had no way of getting back. All I could do was wait for you to rescue me. But you never did."

Eyes as old as time watered. "I didn't know... Amy, I... "

"Why didn't you come for me?" Tears trickled down the Human's face. "You said you'd never abandon us. Why didn't you find me? Why did you let that _monster_ take me away? I needed you and you never came. Where were you?"

A moment passed, the Doctor at a loss for words under Amy's harsh eyes.

"_WHERE WERE YOU_?!" Amy suddenly screamed as she released all her hurt and pain.

The Doctor actually took a step back. Her eyes were wide and her jaw nearly on the floor in shock.

Taking some calming breaths, the Time Lady gulped herself attempted to gather herself. "I... I didn't know," she eventually repeated, her voice nothing more than a breath. She never looked so small. "My... memories of you and Clara were... erased."

Amy clenched her jaw. "_How_?"

The Doctor darted her eyes to her quickly, then cleared her throat. "That's... not important anymore. But seeing you again, being in contact with you, it's undone all that. I remember everything, Amy. All the moments the old me's had with you and Clara. And most of all, I remember the love you two shared."

Closing her eyes again, Amy stifled a sob. "Well... that love's gone now. Even if we find her again, she won't take me back."

The Doctor frowned. "What... ?"

"Look at me!" snapped the Scot. "I'm 62 years old! What kind of life could we have _now_?"

"62?" The Doctor shook her head. "God... you were really on your own for 36 years?"

Biting her lip, Amy blinked back more tears. "Missy left me in 1939. For awhile I... held onto the belief that you'd come for me... then, when I realised you _weren't_... I remembered the time we met Churchill. I tried to get to you then... but I... well... things happened and I... missed you."

"Churchill?" A quirked eyebrow. "But why didn't you just ask him to contact me again? You knew he had a direct line t'me."

Amy looked at her, puzzled. "What? What're you talking about?" When the Doctor reiterated what she said, the Scot just shook her head. "Don't try and make up excuses. I would've _remembered_ that."

"Amy, I promise... "

"No, I _have_ to say this," demanded Amy. Part of her balked at what she was doing, but she was too old and frankly, _bitter_ now to stop. "After that, I knew it was hopeless. I... there was no point going on. Without Clara... " And then the damn broke again, and the tears fell.

The Doctor stepped forward again in an effort to comfort her. "I'm so, so sorry... "

"I tried to kill myself after that," Amy blurted, startling the Time Lady once more. "If it wasn't for Mrs. Bamford wondering what the noise was when the chair... " Her voice faded, part of her still ashamed for what she nearly did. It was the ultimate act of weakness and fragility, but indeed, without Clara, Amy's reason for living was gone.

"Oh God, Amy... " The Doctor sounded broken.

"She made me promise never to try that again," continued Amy. "She thought I was upset over the war - that I'd lost someone on the lines or something. She helped as best she could, but every so often I _would_ try again. It got to a point that Mrs. Bamford... Phoebe... was too afraid to leave me on my own. I think she made me co-landlady to give me something to be responsible for."

The Doctor wiped the tears from her face. "I'm glad she was there for you"

"Yes," Amy seethed. "_Someone_ was." The Time Lady wilted. "But eventually, she died. And left me the pub. It helped, I guess - if I couldn't kill myself, at least I could drink my pain away." Not that it ever worked: everyday, every night, Amy felt the agony of not being with the love of her life. Cried herself to sleep more often than not, at least on the nights she did not simply pass out.

The Doctor momentarily closed her eyes in pain, then looked deeply into Amy's eyes. "Amy... I'm so, so sorry for what you've been through. If I'd have known, I would've risked the very fabric of time itself to save you. But I promise you now, I will get you back to Clara, and I'll _fix_ this. You two _will_ be together again."

Amy looked at her incredulously. "Didn't you hear me earlier?! _Look_ at me! Clara would never... !"

Suddenly, the lights dimmed ever so slightly. "Too late," the Time Lady said with another shrug. "We've landed."

Amy's heartrate both sped up and slowed to a crawl. Was it possible? Was she finally - _finally_ \- going back to her soulmate?

Because despite her words, she wished for nothing else...

TO BE CONTINUED


	9. Chapter 9

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 9

Clara stared at the woman before her. "You must be joking."

The woman chuckled. "Mum, I promise you - I've never been more... "

"_Stop_ calling me that!" snapped the Impossible Girl. "Who are you - _really_?!"

"I swear I'm your daughter!" the stranger pleaded. "I'm Melody... well, everyone calls me Mels for short, but that's not important right now. I'm your daughter, you're my mother, and my other mother is Amy Pond!"

The breath went out of Clara. She could not believe this was happening. First her family gets held up by Nazi soldiers, then this woman turns up and kidnaps her, _and_ claims to be... !

"I come from another time," the so-called "Mels" continued. "Kinda. It's all rather complicated. More like another time_line_, one that's been overwritten by Delgado, but... "

"Wait, _what_?" Clara bore a hole through the young woman. "How do you know my son?!"

The next words out of Mels' mouth shook Clara to her core. "He's not your son! Or at least he's not supposed to be! He shouldn't even exist!"

The Impossible Girl darted to Mels and grabbed her by the scruff of her vest. "How _dare_ you?! You don't know me! And you sure as hell don't know my family! Now take me back to them - _NOW_!"

Before anything else could be said, Mels' hands went to Clara's temples, and suddenly Clara's mind was engulfed...

_The five of them stood in the ruins of the citadel. "We can't just leave her." Amy looked down sadly at the little girl._

_Clara, kneeling to eye-level with the child, tenderly wiped a tear from her face. "You're right. Doctor, we have to take her with us."_

_The Doctor frowned deeply. "We can't just do that, girls. She might still have family on Gallifrey."_

_"I don't," the little girl said quietly. "Mummy and Daddy were all I had."_

_"It's true," said the General, standing a few yards from them. "Her parents were both in their last regenerations when they had her. The rest of her line was wiped out by the war."_

_Clara's own eyes welled up. "You poor, sweet thing... " The girl tried and failed to hold back a whimper._

_"Doctor, please... " Amy's voice was all-but pleading._

_The two Time Lords shared a glance. "She really has no one else?" asked the Doctor. The General just somberly shook her head. The Doctor was silent for a moment, then sighed deeply._

_"Melody, would you like to come back with us?" asked Clara softly. "We'll take care of you."_

_The girl sniffled. "Would you... be my new mummies?"_

_Clara gulped and looked up at her wife. Amy simply knelt down beside them and put a hand on the girl's shoulder. "If that's what you want, sweetheart. But we won't force you to do anything. If you'd rather stay here on Gallifrey... "_

_"We can get her temporary accommodation," said the General. "Then look into adoption. She'll be looked after, don't worry."_

_"But they looked after me!" yelped little Melody, making Clara's heart swell. Because indeed, when the Dalek/Cyberman Alliance stormed the planet, the Oswald-Ponds' risked their lives to protect the newly-orphaned girl. "I want to stay with them!" Melody then gasped, and looked down in shame. "I mean... if... if you'll have me."_

_Both Clara and Amy failed to stifle sobs. "We'd be honoured, angel," choked the Impossible Girl. She then looked up expectantly at the Doctor._

_The Time Lord sighed again, a smile quirking his lips. "Been awhile since I've had a child on the TARDIS... "_

_With that, Melody threw herself forward, and the new family embraced tightly..._

... Clara tore herself away from the woman's hands, breaking contact. She hobbled backwards, barely keeping her feet. She took deep breaths as the images in her mind lingered. What _were_ they? Were they really... ?

Mels took a moment to steady her own breathing. "My God... you've been with that psychopath for twenty years?" Touch telepathy was a two-way street.

Clara looked at her, gulping deeply. "What... was that?" That vision, that _memory_... it could not be real. Yet it was so vivid. So pure. And incredibly, not from Mels' perspective. Clara saw it, felt it, through her _own_ eyes.

Mels looked at her. "The day you adopted me." A single tear trickled down her face. Clara was too shocked to feel her own. "My parents were killed in an attack on Gallifrey, and you and Mummy... Amy... kept me safe. The Doctor saved the day, as sh... as he always does. And you took me to the TARDIS with you." She smiled softly. "You brought me _home_."

Clara blinked rapidly. "No... no... this can't be. How can I... it... it must be some trick."

"Mum, _please_," begged the young woman. "It's no trick. And I know it wasn't even _my_ memory you were seeing. Somehow, despite the changed timeline, your subconscious remembers how things _should_ be. Almost like a... "

"... dream," finished Clara. Her mind went back to the recurring dream she had, every so often, for the past, well, two decades. Of her and Amy, staring out a window to the vastness of space. Talking of a woman... their...

"But it's not a dream," insisted Mels. "It happened - until Delgado changed things. He escaped the Time War and travelled back to... "

"The Time War?" Clara - and Amy - were with the Doctor when he partnered with two of his previous incarnations to end that conflict with the Daleks. He saved Gallifrey in the process - though for years afterward, believed he did the opposite.

"You remember that, at least," said Mels. "Entire timelines were created and wiped out. And in one of those, you and Missy got together and had Delgado. But when that timeline was erased, he somehow managed to escape the timelock and get back to the post-war reality. The proper reality." She sighed. "Where you and Amy married and adopted me and, later, had my little sister."

"Sister... ?"

Mels nodded. "One thing at a time. The point is, he somehow managed to change things so instead, you were tricked into marrying Missy."

Clara's eyes bulged. "Tricked?"

"Yes, y'see... "

"_Get away from my wife_!"

Clara and Mels darted their heads at the demanding voice - to see the Mistress standing infront of the Masters-Oswalds' TARDIS, sonic pistol at the ready...

TO BE CONTINUED

* * *

Incase it wasn't clear, Mels is the unnamed woman from Part 1.


	10. Chapter 10

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 10

The TARDIS materialised and, after a moment, the doors opened to the fast purple field. The Doctor was the first out and she scanned the area, eyes darting quickly. She frowned deeply. "Where is she?"

Fully stepping out of the time machine, the Time Lady continued looking out at the empty green horizon, as Amy was next out the box. The Doctor could sense the uncertainty in her former companion. Uncertainty only overshadowed by her own.

To say the Doctor's mind was a jumble would be an understatement, even for her. The sudden jolt of her memories returning was almost as taxing as regeneration itself, but that was not what was troubling her. It was the fact her memories were wiped in the first place. However, she only had herself to blame.

"Where is she?" Amy repeated the Doctor's words.

The Gallifreyan thought back to the last time he was here. Now the memory was back in her mind, she groaned internally: this was all her fault. She never should have done what he did. Her previous incarnation often wondered if he was a "good man" - but that did not stop him acting like a law unto himself. True, the Doctor _always_ played by her own rules, but her last body was especially self-important. With more than a fair sample of hubris.

Why else would the Doctor take it upon himself to actually mess with someone's mind? Indeed, that was his intention when he learnt Clara's situation. The Doctor might have her memories of her past companions back, but she still found the Impossible Girl's situation unbelievable: Clara actually _slept_ with the Doctor's worst enemy, the Mistress.

She remembered it all. Clara, wedding dress torn, crying into his arms, confessing she cheated on Amy, her fiancee. The Doctor would be lying if she said she was not shocked, confused and even disappointed, but seeing Clara in such pain, such distress... it made him do something they was loathe to do. The Doctor actually intentionally tried tampering with someone's mind: with a neural blocker, he intended to wipe Clara's memory of her time with Missy, just so she and Amy could be happy. As the Time Lord said at the time, they "had their fill of unhappy endings".

But something went wrong. The neural blocker backfired, and instead wiped the Doctor's memory - of Clara _and_ Amy. And because she and the TARDIS were telepathically linked, the time machine's memory banks of the two companions was erased also.

Releasing another groan, the Doctor closed her eyes momentarily. This was indeed all her own fault. She had no right to mess with someone's mind - _ever_. But once again, her former self broke the rules... and two of the most important people in her lives paid for it. But she was going to fix this: the Doctor _would_ reunite Amy and Clara. Nothing else mattered.

Unfortunately, things were not going well. The TARDIS brought them to the same unmapped planet there were on a lifetime ago, literally no less than an hour after they were last here. However, Clara was nowhere to be seen. Instead, all that remained was...

The Doctor knelt down and looked at the pieces of the neural blocker still littering the grass. "I don't understand," she breathed, picking a part of the shattered device up and looking at it. "What happened?" Did Clara break the device? Did it short-circuit and explode? Sadly, despite the return of memory, both the Doctor and TARDIS' minds were still slightly patchy, unable to recall _everything_ which transpired. The Time Lady remembered the blue box actually dematerialising of her own accord momentarily, but neither woman nor machine could remember _why_.

"You said she'd be here... " The sad voice brought the Doctor out of her morose musings. She looked up to see Amy struggling to keep her composure.

The Doctor's hearts sank. "I'm sorry, Amy. This is where I last remember her. Where I tried to... " She stopped. If she remembered correctly - which she now did - Amy never found out about Clara's infidelity. She _could not_ have, if she spent 36 years broken by her loss.

36 years. The Doctor's jaw clenched. Damn Missy. Damn her for condemning Amy to a life stuck in the past, stuck in one of the worst periods of Earth's history, with no way back. She was behind this, the Doctor knew. Missy was obsessed with Clara; she probably kidnapped the girl as soon as the TARDIS left this world.

The Mistress would pay for this. The Doctor would make sure she paid _dearly_.

Getting to her feet, the Time Lady held Amy's shoulders in an attempt to calm her. "I'll find her, Amy - I promise. I won't rest until I do. I'll spend the rest of my lives searching for her if I have to... I won't stop until she's with you again." She took a moment to look at Amy's face, ravaged by time. She was hardly geriatric, but Humans aged so quickly... it was not fair. Amy and Clara deserved a lifetime of happiness together. And it was all gone.

But the Doctor could not let Amy give up again, as the girl's tales of attempted... the Doctor's guts churned at the thought. The idea anyone could even _contemplate_... No, the Doctor said herself she was a bringer of hope. No matter howmuch time they had left, Amy and Clara would be reunited. The Doctor refused to consider any other option.

"Doctor?" The Gallifreyan turned to her team, her fam. Part of her felt guilty for all-but forgetting them in this current adve... no, this was no adventure. Too frivolous for such an important thing. This was a _mission_.

Still, seeing their confused faces, sensing the unease bleed, particularly from one of them... "Yaz," the Doctor whispered, "Graham, Ryan... I'll take you back to Sheffield. This is something I _have_ to do - but I can't ask you to stay with me. I don't know how long this'll take. And it's probably gonna get very dangerous."

"Are you kiddin'?" Yaz had an incredulous look on her face. "You say that, and then think that I'd... we'd leave you now?"

"Yaz, I... "

"Doc, we're a team," said Graham. "Where you go, we go."

Ryan nodded. "That's what family does."

The Doctor could not help the proud smile on her face. But it was only momentary, as she again looked at the distraught Amy. "Let's go." With that, the all re-entered the TARDIS...

TO BE CONTINUED


	11. Chapter 11

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 11

"I'll say it one more time - _get away from my wife_."

Missy had her sonic pistol pointed directly at the stranger. The unknown woman who kidnapped her beloved Clara. The Time Lady took a step forwards. "Make up your mind, girl. Before I splatter it all over the wall."

"You think, now that I've finally found her, I'm just gonna let her go back to you?" the stranger said. "She'll never be with you again."

Missy's eyes narrowed. "Who are you?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." She reached out and grabbed Clara's arm, pulling her closer to her.

Normally Missy would not hesitate to terminate this woman. But with her wife present... she still had an image to uphold. An image of reformation and tolerance. If she flat-out murdered this stranger right infront of Clara, it might take sometime to rebuild that image.

Sometimes Missy found the whole situation aggravating. This was supposed to be a special day, for several reasons. It was twenty years since she manipulated events to get Clara on her side. Two decades of slowly strengthening their connection with children. The Impossible Girl was now impossibly linked to the Time Lady, and Missy would not let her go for _anything_. She would sacrifice entire planets just to keep her safe. And for a laugh, obviously.

Indeed, that would have been part of the celebrations today. There was a reason Missy took her family to the fledgling Third Reich, and it was not the bollocks reason she gave Clara. Teaching their children the folly of evil? Clara _really_ bought that? It took all the Gallifreyan's willpower to keep from laughing in her face.

No, Missy discovered the Nazis potentially had a superweapon of alien origin. The chance to take it right from under Hitler _and_ Clara's noses was too good to pass up. Any opportunity to continue her machinations while keeping her wife completely in the dark was always a thrill to Missy.

The weapon was known as the Validium Arrow. Or was it the Nemesis Statue? Could have been Teselecta, actually. Was that even a thing? Was the Silence involved? Who even knew anymore?

Regardless, all those plans went out the window when Clara was abducted. Who did this woman think she was? _Missy_ did the abducting around here, thank you very much. If she knew she could get away with it, the Time Lady would abduct this stranger and keep her in one of the torture rooms Clara did not know about deep in the bowels of their TARDIS, just out of principle.

"Try me," Missy said to the woman. "Before today, I wouldn't have believed someone would be insane enough to steal my wife. Yet here we are. Now, I'll give you five seconds to hand her over, before I do something I'll regret." Regret _Clara seeing_, that was.

"Missy, wait!" yelped the Impossible Girl. "Don't hurt her!"

Missy's eyes widened. "What? You must be joking. Dearest, I know you abhor violence, but this silly little girl made the error of taking you from me. " She tilted her head. "And her five seconds are up, so I'm afraid it's going to be a rather _fatal_ error... "

"You won't win!" the stranger said.

Now Missy did laugh. "Oh, how are you going to stop me? If you think that sonic trowel will do anything, think again. Those things are junk, as is that vortex manipulator you're wearing. Don't think I didn't notice how old it is. You'll never get away in time."

The woman clenched her jaw. "I've come too far to give up now. I'll keep you away from her if it's the last thing I do!"

"Actually, the last thing you'll do is let go of her arm before I vaporise you," Missy sighed. "Unless you intend to use her as a shield... "

Clara frowned. "Missy... ?"

Before anything else could be said or done, a noise filled the area. A grinding noise. A noise familier to everyone present. The three women turned their heads... as a blue police box began materialising between them.

Oh no. No _no_. They had finally been found. After twenty years avoidance, Missy would be discovered. By _him_. Blinking, she darted her attention back to the unknown woman and fired, needing to aim slightly askew to avoid hitting Clara. As a result, the blast struck the stranger's shoulder. She went down with a scream.

Missy turned back to her wife, to see Clara just staring blankly at the solidifying time machine, almost in a trance. Clenching her jaw, the Time Lady mirrored the unknown woman's earlier move and grabbed Clara's arm, before yanking her away from the approaching TARDIS back to their own...

TO BE CONTINUED


	12. Chapter 12

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 12

The blue box finally settled and the doors were once more opened. The Doctor, her team and Amy stepped out, just in time to see the Doric pillar dematerialise.

"Blimey... " breathed the Time Lady. "I actually found them... " But even as the words escaped her lips, the other TARDIS was gone.

"_No_!" came a loud scream, and Amy rushed past the Doctor to the spot Missy's time machine occupied just seconds before. "We were _so close_! I've lost her _again_!" Tears immediately flooded her face.

"I'm sorry, Amy," said the Doctor as she approached her. "But it'll be OK now. The old girl managed to lock onto Missy's time machine and now we can follow the artron trial. No matter where or when she goes now, we'll be right behind her."

"Doctor," said Yaz from behind, "you better take a look at this."

The Time Lady turned back and finally noticed the woman on the ground, her shoulder badly singed. Going to her, the Doctor knelt down where her team was already investigating. "Yaz, take care of Amy will you, please?"

"... of course," came the policewoman's reply, and she got to her feet and went to the barmaid... well, _former_ barmaid would probably be a better description now.

Meanwhile, the Doctor ran her screwdriver along the injured woman's prone form, then frowned at the results. "Blimey," she repeated.

"What is it, Doctor?" asked Ryan.

"She's Gallifreyan, but that's not the weird part," the Time Lady replied. "Her artron levels are off the charts." She spied the vortex manipulator on the girl's wrist. "I didn't think that model was capable of the amount of time jumps she's apparently done." She then shook her head and sighed. "Still, that ain't the important thing right now. Her shoulder needs t'be fixed. Help me get her into the TARDIS, will you?"

Graham looked at her incredulously. "We're just pickin' up anyone now, Doc?"

"Not just anyone, Graham," said the Doctor. "She's one of _my_ people. A Gallifreyan - maybe even a Time Lady like myself. Now... "

Suddenly a low groan emminated from the woman. "N... not... Time Lady... just... "

"Sshh, it's alright," soothed the Doctor. "I'll get you patched up, and... "

"No... no... gotta... gotta get... Mum... " The woman's words were little more than a mumble.

"Your mum?" asked Yaz, who with Amy had returned to the unknown injured woman. "Is your mum hurt too? Where is she?"

"Cla... Clara... "

Amy choked. "_What_?!"

Like that, the unknown woman became fully awake, her eyes suddenly focusing. "Oh my God... " She looked up to see the aged Scot above her. Her jaw dropped. "_Mummy_!" She shot up in a sitting position, but instantly held her shoulder in pain. "Ah, _shit_!" Hissing, she then looked around her, as if noticing the people crowding her for the first time. "This... this can't be real."

"'Fraid it is," quipped the Doctor. "Whatever 'this' is." She shared a glance with her fam and Amy, who looked utterly bewildered. "Perhaps it's best if we get you seen to first, then you can explain who you... "

"No, no," repeated the woman. "We have to go after them! We have to get Clara back... stop Delgado!"

"We will, trust me," the Doctor said steadfastly. "Well, the 'getting Clara back' bit, anyway. But how do you know her? And who's Del... "

"Please, Aunty Doctor, there's no time!" The woman's eyes were like fire.

"_What_ did you just call... ?"

Before anything else could be uttered, a loud crackle filled the air. Everyone turned to see a flash of light suddenly form on a nearby wall. Shaped like a...

"No! Another crack in time!" The woman tried getting to her feet, but let out another gasp of pain. "We have to seal it before it gets too big!"

"Doctor, that looks like the same thing we saw in London," remarked Ryan.

"Please, you have to seal it!" The girl's eyes were now full of _fear_.

The Doctor clenched her jaw. "What do I do?"

"Take my sonic trowel," said the woman, handing it to the Time Lady. "I have it automatically set on... on... " Then, like a light switch, she passed out again.

Biting her lip, the Doctor got to her feet and strode towards the anomaly. "Doctor!" came Yaz's panicked voice. "Be careful!"

The Doctor remained silent, no funny line at the ready. Perhaps it was the anger at _just missing_ her old enemy, but she was no mood for jokes now. She could also tell, from the injured woman's words and actions, this... _whatever_ it was... was dangerous. She gazed at the bright, crackling light, and could feel something on her mind. Like the anomaly _itself_ was tugging...

Shaking her head, the Doctor pointed the sonic trowel at the light. Sure enough, the device seemed to react automatically, and slowly, the crack began to fade. However, after nearly a minute the power started waning. Frowning, the Doctor saw the trowel was almost burnt out. It would not be enough to fix the anomaly. Unless...

She raised her other hand and activated her screwdriver to work alongside the trowel. Even then, the crack took ages to seal. "Whatever this is, it's tough," said the Doctor to her team. "But I think it's workin'." Eventually, the crack was gone, and the Time Lady let out a held breath.

Turning back to her friends, the Doctor ran a hand through her hair. "Now then, let's get our guest to the medibay - and then maybe we can get some answers... "

TO BE CONTINUED


	13. Chapter 13

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 13

"She said she was _what_?"

Clara gulped. "My daughter." She sat on the sofa in the large living room of their TARDIS, Missy sat next to her and Delgado looking on. The other children were eventually shooed away after their birth mother was returned to them: best not scare them if Clara was hurt or something. Fortunately, the woman who abducted her did not harm the Impossible Girl. At least physically.

Emotionally was another story. Missy could see the stress in her wife's enormous eyes, the fear and anxiety. Whoever that strange girl was, whatever she did, effected Clara enormously. For that alone, Missy would find and kill her. "Michelle? Jenna? One we've yet to have?"

"Um, not exactly." Another gulp. "She said Am... "

"Look, it doesn't matter what she said," interrupted Delgado. "The lady was obviously crazy. I say we just forget about it and move on."

"_Forget about it_?" Missy glared at him. "Are _you_ insane, Delgado? Oh, no no no no no. I most certainly will _not_ forget about it. I'm going to find this girl and let her know what happens when someone takes something of mine - and not just anything, but my _very wife_."

"Mother, I really don't think... "

"No, you obviously _didn't_ think for you to suggest we 'forget about it'." She shook her head. "Honestly, Delgado, I thought I taught you better than that. Actions have consequences. And this little girl will find out what _hers_ are, very soon."

"Missy, please," came Clara's pained whine, and the Time Lady returned her attention to her puppy. "Just drop it for abit. The things she said... I just need to process them. I need sometime to... "

"You shouldn't give it any thought at all, Mum!" Delgado blurted. "She's not worth it."

Missy narrowed her eyes. "And how would you know... ?" Delgado seemed clued in on things on a level his siblings' were not. Missy was almost proud of the lad, being the closest in matching her in intelligence... though not _actually_ matching her, of course. That would be impossible.

The young man took a breath. "I just... don't think we should go chasing after this woman, especially today. C'mon guys - I mean, it's still your anniversary. Let's not let this ruin that. We can go back anytime."

Missy pondered his words. "Hm, you're right. We _can_ go back to her at anytime. However, you also seem to think this family is democratic. _I_ say what we do and don't do, Delgado - and you would be wise to remember that."

"But Mother... !"

"Since when did you learn to _talk back_, young... !"

"Please, just _stop_!" Clara slammed her fists down on the sofa, bringing her wife and firstborn out of their impending argument.

Sighing, the Gallifreyan stroked her wife's hair. "Of course, poppet. Forgive us. We just hate seeing you upset, that's all."

"Please," whispered the Impossible Girl. "I just need... sometime alone."

"Clara... ?"

"Please, Missy." Clara stood up and went to the exit. "I need to have a lay down. I need to think."

"But angel... "

Clara turned back and glared at them. "Just leave me alone for abit!" Her face then softened, and her eyes went downcast. "_Please_." With that, she left for her and Missy's room.

Missy could barely contain her rage. After a few beats, she got to her feet herself and stormed out the living room, Delgado in hot pursuit. Instead of following Clara, however, the Time Lady turned in the direction of the control room. "I'm going to find out who this little shit is _right now_... "

"Mother... "

Missy spun and pointed a finger right in his face. "You've said quite enough, young man! Don't ever speak to me like that again, do you understand?!"

"... yes, Mother."

Missy continued her journey to the control room. "Now do something useful and check on your siblings, make sure they're not... I don't know, playing with the Dido sand beast again." With slumped shoulders, her eldest trudged away, leaving Missy to stew alone.

When she reached the control room, she put in commands to send it back from whence it last was. However, just before she activated the machine, Missy realised something. Her "best friend" would no doubt there. Avoiding the Doctor was something the Mistress was paramount in doing for the past twenty years.

If the old fool saw Clara with her, all her plans would be undone. For indeed, Missy had an inkling despite her best efforts to keep her poppet at her side, Clara would go back to the Doctor in a heartbeat. And that was something Missy would _never_ risk. It was her one fea... _concern_.

Biting her lip, Missy surmised she may very well have to "forget all about it". No doubt the Doctor would see the unknown woman who abducted Clara and help her heal from the sonic pistol wound. The more she thought, the more Missy worried: given how crazy her old frenemy was, he might even believe the girl's ramblings at being Clara's daughter, if indeed that was what she claimed.

Meaning... there was a good chance the Doctor's TARDIS was pursuing them - right now.

Dashing round the control console, Missy began computing new commands instead. She would not be caught so easily...

TO BE CONTINUED


	14. Chapter 14

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 14

"Where are we _now_?"

The Doctor winced at Amy's demand, even as she took in their latest surroundings. It was a London street, with people going about their daily business. The Time Lady scanned the area, desperately looking for something which could by Missy's TARDIS. But there was not a red phone box, grandfather clock or Doric pillar to be seen. Of course, the renegade Gallifreyan's time machine was not limited to those options, like the Doctor's was to hers.

Not that she liked admitting that...

Letting out a groan of frustration, the Doctor balled her hands into fists. "That Missy - she's _really annoyin_'! She must know we're onto her, so she's tryin' to cover up her artron trail. Sendin' us to other places to cover her tracks."

"So Clara's not here," said Amy. "Let's go, then."

"Doc," came Graham's voice, "is it really a good idea to leave that girl in the medibay?"

"We ain't got time to wait for her to wake up, Graham," replied the Time Lady. "She's perfectly safe. But Amy's right - c'mon, let's... " She paused as she spied something on a nearby telephone pole. She strode upto it and saw the poster in detail, with its bold typeface and two pictures. "Oh my God... " Ripping it off the pole, she called over to her former companion. "Amy, you need to see this."

Amy went to her side and her eyes bulged as she read the poster:

_MISSING PERSONS - AMY POND AND CLARA OSWALD - IF YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT THE POLICE - REQUESTED BY RORY WILLIAMS_

Tears once more flowed. "Rory... "

"Of course, I forgot about him, too!" Again the Doctor was filled with self-hate. What a _mess_ this was - and it all because of her. "When you and Clara never came back, he must've called the authorities and had these posters put up." She then spun around and began surveying the area again. "Bin, I need a bin... "

"A bin?" asked Graham.

"There!" Dashing over to one, the Doctor ducked down and rummaged around inside, before finally fishing out a newspaper. "Won't be more than a couple of days old, not unless the city cleaners are on strike again." She eyed the front page. "2015. The old girl must have managed to still get us to somewhere relevant. This is just a few weeks after you were last with the old me."

"2015... "

The Doctor turned at the words, to see Graham's wistful face. "That's when I was diagnosed... "

Grief filled the Gallifreyan. "Graham... I'm sorry... "

"Doc... d'you think we could... seein' as we're... "

"_Graham_," the Doctor warned.

That seemed to get through, and the old man paused, before smiling half-heartedly. "Yeah, yeah, of course. I understand." He laughed, though it was completely empty. "Guess it's abit of a walk to Sheffield, eh?" With that, he turned and shuffled back to the TARDIS. "I'll be waitin' with Ryan and Yaz. Think I'll sit this little bit out."

"We won't be long." Gulping, the Doctor watched him disappear into her time machine. After a sigh, she turned back to Amy. "Sorry about that. He... "

"What does this mean?" asked the Scot, completely ignoring what just happened. She held the Missing Persons poster in her hand.

"It means we need to check in on Rory," the Doctor replied.

Panic spread on the woman's face. "We can't! He can't see me like this!"

"Like what?" The Gallifreyan frowned. "Oh. Amy, I understand... " - she did not - "... but we need t'see him. He needs t'know you're alright."

"Alright? _Alright_?" Amy thrust the poster onto the Doctor's chest, all scrunched up. "I lost 36 years of my life and you say I'm _alright_?! You fucking _idiot_! _Nothing about this is alright_!"

The Doctor just glared at her. Then, with a clenched jaw, she began to walk off. "Fine. Go wait in the TARDIS with the others."

"Wh... where are you going?" Amy choked.

"He deserves to know, Amy," the Doctor called back, heading in the direction of Rory's flat. Good thing she remembered where that was now, too. She continued on without stopping - if she did, Amy's words would just dig deeper into her hearts. As if she did not feel guilty enough, the Scot once again let her get a glimpse of the rage and fury buried within. Not that the Doctor could blame her. Amy felt abandoned for four decades - you do not just shrug that off in a few hours.

Perhaps that loneliness why she was back by the Doctor's side after just a few yards.

Eventually, they reached Rory's flat. Again Amy had trouble stemming her tears. The Doctor surmised they fell for a variety of reasons. She decided to keep the initiative on her side. "You don't have to say anything. You can even wait out of sight if you prefer. Though having you with me would help convincin' him that I am who I say I am. Y'know, what with the whole woman thing... "

"Please," whispered the Scot. "I... can't face him. It's all just... too much."

The Doctor just nodded and sighed. "Go wait outside. I won't be long."

"What will you say?"

She shrugged. "Oh, y'know me - I'll think of somethin'. Always do." Once Amy was out of sight, the Doctor bit her lip. "I hope." With that, she tentatively knocked on the door.

Soon, it opened and the Doctor could not help the smile spreading on her face as she saw yet another old, lost friend. "Yes, can I help you?" the young man asked.

"Rory... " the Doctor whispered.

"Er... do I know you?"

The Time Lady nearly jumped at the question. "Ah right, of course. Forgot my own words just 22 seconds ago ago." She cleared her throat. "Rory Williams?"

The man narrowed his eyes. "... yes. And you are?"

"I'm the... " She stopped herself, then held up the crumpled poster, flattened out as best as possible. "I believe you've been leavin' these around. You're lookin' for someone?"

Rory looked at the poster and the two women pictured, and frowned deeply. "No, you must be mistaken."

The Doctor blinked. "Wot?"

He shook his head. "I've never seen this before in my life. Or those two girls. They're both gorgeous, though. Are they friends of yours?"

The Time Lady was dumbstruck. "But... Rory... this is Amy and Clara. _Amy_. _Your Amy_."

"My Amy... ?"

"_Your ex-fiancee_, _Amy Pond_." The Doctor emphasised every word.

Now Rory looked concerned. "Look... I don't know who you are, but I've never been engaged. You must have the wrong place." He went to close the door, but was stopped by the Doctor's foot.

"Rory, it's me! The Doctor!" So much for subterfuge.

"I think you _need_ a doctor, whoever you are." Rory actually looked pitying. "Get your foot out of the way."

The Doctor could not believe what was happening. "Rory, you and Amy spent ages travellin' with me!" She then thrust the poster back into his face. "Your name's on this!"

"Is this a joke?" he said exasperatedly. "The guys at the hospital taking the piss? Did Frank put you upto this?"

"Rory... !"

"Look, I have no idea what or who you're talking about. Now, will you please leave? I'm sorry, but if you're for real, then you must have the wrong place, in which case I hope you find who you're looking for. If you're not, then tell Frank to get a life. Goodbye."

The door was then closed in the Doctor's face, leaving her stunned silent...

TO BE CONTINUED


	15. Chapter 15

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 15

Amy saw the Doctor approach, and could tell something was wrong. The woman looked completely befuddled, which was never a good state for her "raggady man" to be in.

Raggady man. Woman. Had the circumstances been different, perhaps Amy would be pondering more on that _slight change_ more than she actually was.

Instead, all she could think about right now was shame. Cowardice. Though she knew the Doctor would not call her up on it, Amy should have had the courage to see Rory. She _wanted_ to see him. After 36 years trapped in the past, she never thought she would see anyone she knew again. But she just... could not. It was not a case of vanity, or embarrassment, but... she did not know _what_, but so much was happening, so quickly. There was only a certain amount she could take.

As the Doctor reached her, the Scot frowned. "Well?"

The Time Lady - _Lady_! - looked at her, utter confusion in her eyes. "He... didn't know me."

Amy snorted. "Not surprised."

"He didn't know _you_."

That changed Amy's tune. "He what?"

The Doctor shook her head. "He said he didn't know you. Never heard of you, of Clara... of any of us." She gritted her teeth. "Somethin' really weird is goin' on here. Maybe he's had his mind messed with. Maybe Missy got here before us and wiped his... " She stopped when a buzzing noise filled the air. Amy watched as the alien got out what must have been her sonic screwdriver - it certainly looked like a piece of crap now - and inspected it. "Yep, somethin' definitely weird. Gettin' the same readings as before."

"Before?"

"Before I found you," said the Doctor distractedly, as she walked a path indicated by her device, which seemed to be acting like a tracker. "Just outside your pub, as a matter of fact, we found one of them."

Amy tutted. "One of _what_?"

They both stopped when they saw it. The glowing crack on the nearby wall. "Those," said the Doctor.

"It's the same thing we saw with the girl," Amy said.

"Yep. The sonic picked it up then too, actually. Just that the girl's voice kinda muffled the buzzin'." The Doctor approached the anomoly, screwdriver at the ready. "I don't know exactly what these are, but Mels said they're bad, and I believe her." She pointed her sonic at the glowing light and did what she did earlier.

"Mels... " Amy gulped. "Doctor... what she said... "

"This is alot harder without her trowel... " muttered the Time Lady.

"She said Clara was... " The Scot had to choke out the words. "... was her mother... and she called me... "

"Yes, I know, Amy," came the Doctor's distracted, yet still sympathetic reply. "I promise we'll get t'the bottom of this, but one thing at a time." She growled slightly. "C'mon, seal you pesky little blighter... "

Amy momentarily felt a slight headache, but blinked out of it once she heard the Doctor's voice again. "Ah-ha, done it!" The Gallifreyan let out a breath of air in satisfaction, at the now clear spot where the glowing crack was just seconds ago. "Definitely need t'ask our new friend what these exactly are. But first thing's first: we gotta catch up to Missy. And add what she's done to Rory to her list of crimes to answer for."

Amy tilted her head. "Rory?"

The Doctor nodded. "Don't worry, Amy, I'll fix everythin', I promise."

Amy just frowned. "Who's Rory?"

TO BE CONTINUED


	16. Chapter 16

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 16

Yaz watched as the Doctor and Amy returned the TARDIS, and again self-hate engulfed her.

She should not be feeling this way. She was a police officer, for fuck's sake: she should be concerned for the wellbeing of this poor Scottish woman, angry at the clear injustice done, and determined to see this mysterious "Missy" pay for her crimes. And Yaz _did_ feel so, honestly. She could tell this was no mere "adventure" - this was far, far more personal.

But it was a _different_ personal factor altogether which caused Yaz such concern.

The Doctor - _her_ Doctor - had not left the side of this Amy since she joined them from 1975.

Yaz realised she hated feel jealous, for every possible reason.

And just moments after returning to the time machine, it was like the Doctor was doing it on purpose - which Yaz knew was stupid. It was just... the beautiful Time Lady was almost pawing the elder Scot now, looking at her with nothing but the utmost concern and worry. "Something's wrong... something's very, _very_ wrong," Yaz heard the Doctor mutter. She also saw the alien's holding Amy's hand tight.

This was _pathetic_. Yaz cursed herself internally: she had to fucking _grow up_.

"Hey Doc," said Graham as he arrived in the console room. "Did you do what you needed to do?"

The Doctor glanced at them, and Yaz could see the consternation on her face. Even if she did not hear her best friend's words seconds ago, she knew something was very wrong indeed. Gulping, the Doctor turned back to the '70s landlady. "Amy, you need t'come with me to the medibay. I need to run a full... "

"_Mummy_!"

Yaz was nearly pushed aside as a figure dashed past her and threw itself into the startled Amy. Holding the Scot like she was afraid she would disappear, Mels buried her face into Amy's shoulder. "I'm sorry, I was kinda out of it earlier, but I'm OK now! It's just... oh God, Mummy, I was afraid I'd never see you again!" She began weeping, her sobbing muffled by Amy's shoulder.

Amy blinked several times, but found herself returning the hug. "I... I... "

"Er, sorry, Doctor," came Ryan's approaching voice from the corridor. "She woke up, and I couldn't stop her."

"It's OK, Ryan," the Time Lady said to the young man, then sighed at the still-close women. "Um, Mels... I need t'take Amy to the... "

"I've missed you so much, Mummy," whined Mels as she looked into Amy's eyes. "I... I never gave up hope, but I... I can't actually believe... " She sniffled, and Yaz, the Doctor and everyone else could see Mels, at least, _believed_ what she claimed. Because at this moment, she just looked like a lost little girl desperate for her mother.

But Amy was just confused. "Who are you? And why are you calling me... ?"

Mels clenched her jaw. "That bloody Delgado... you really don't remember. But I bet you do deep down, like Mum. In her dreams, she remembers how things should be."

Amy's eyes widened. "Her dreams... ?" A tear went down her cheek. "You mean... Clara... ?"

With that, Mels explained her origin, how she was orphaned on Gallifrey, and the married Amy and Clara adopted her. Needless to say, everyone in the console room was flabbergasted.

None moreso than Amy herself, who was now nearly shivering, crying silently, with the Doctor's hand on a shoulder for support. "So it... it does work out... ? Me and Clara... "

"Yes, Mummy," said Mels, nodding profusely. "We're supposed to be a family. All of us."

"Us?" The Doctor tilted her head. "You called me 'aunty' earlier... "

"Well, yeah," shrugged Mels. Her eyes darted to someone in particular. "I... don't really know how much I _should_ tell you, as it seems... you're not there yet."

"What does that mean?" Graham asked.

"It means she knows things about our future, or at least mine." The Doctor sighed. "But Mels... right now I need t'get Amy t'the medibay."

A look of horror crossed Mels' face. "What's happened?!"

"I'm fine," Amy insisted.

"We went to see an old friend," explained the Doctor. "Rory. But... "

"Uncle Rory?"

Ryan rolled his eyes at Mels' interruption. "Are you related to _everyone_?"

Graham groaned at his stepgrandson's lack of tact, but Mels actually smirked. "You just wait, Ryan Sinclair." The lad's eyes nearly popped out their sockets.

"Plus," continued the Time Lady, "we encountered another of those glowing cracks."

Mels grumbled. "Those are Delgado's doing."

"Who?" asked Yaz.

"Delgado. Clara and Missy's eldest son."

"_WHAT_?!" yelled the Doctor and Amy simultaneously.

Mels grit her teeth. "Um, right... yeah, probably could've brought that up better... "

TO BE CONTINUED


	17. Chapter 17

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 17

The Doctor paced the medibay like a caged lioness. "OK, OK... " She paused and looked at those around her, bit her lip, then resumed pacing. "OK... this is all gettin' weird. And usually I like weird, but not when my best friends are involved. Not like this. So... " She pointed at Mels. "You claim t'be Amy and Clara's daughter from an alternate timeline."

"Not alternate," Mels said defiantly. "The _proper_ timeline."

"Fine, fair 'nuff." The Doctor ran a hand through her hair. "But instead, Clara has gotten with Missy." An audible growl could be heard from Amy.

"Yeah, somehow that monstress convinced Mum to leave Mummy and... " Mels sighed, clearly disgusted herself.

"Clara would _never_ join her," spat Amy. "She must've kidnapped and hypnotised her. I swear, when I find her, I'll snap that bitch's ne... "

"Amy," the Doctor warned. "Let's not say anythin' we'll regret."

Amy scowled deeply. "No, fuck you! You have no idea what I've been through!"

"Hey, don't talk to her like that!" interjected Yaz, coming to the Time Lady's side.

"I lost 36 years of my life," the Scot continued. "But it turns out me and Clara _are_ supposed to be together! We even have a _daughter_! But that bitch has stolen her from me - so excuse me for wanting her _dead_!"

"_Ladies_!" Everyone looked at Graham. "Look, don't you think we have bigger things to worry about right now than blamin' eachother? Regardless of what this girl claims is true or not, clearly this 'Missy' woman is bad news. So how about we concentrate on findin' her, and worry about the whys and hows later?"

The Doctor nodded. "Quite right, Graham. And that's not all we have t'deal with. There's also Rory, and whatever those glowing cracks are."

"I don't know what they are," said Mels. "But I _do_ know they have something to do with Delgado."

The Doctor scrunched her face. "That name keeps comin' up. Who _is_ Delgado?"

Mels took a deep breath. "Clara and Missy's family shouldn't exist. Their firstborn, Delgado is a remnant from a reality created _and_ deleted during the Time War. Somehow, he escaped the timelock and made it back to the post-war timeline. Anyway, he set all this in motion. He was determined to make his family exist again, so he went back in time and created a timeloop to get his parents together in this reality."

"How?"

"I'm not exactly sure _how_," admitted Mels. "As in, the technicalities. All I know is _what_ he did. He manipulated events leading to his own birth, Clara and Missy's marriage, and his siblings."

The Doctor shook her head. "I don't understand. How can it be a timeloop if he's from a deleted timeline?"

"Like what came first," said Graham. "The chicken or the egg."

"Precisely!" The Doctor smirked. "For the record, the answer's the egg."

"My best guess is that, somehow, he managed to, like, _merge_ with his younger self once he was born. Thus the loop was sealed and could then continue on its own."

"There's one thing I don't understand," said Yaz. "Well, actually, there's plenty I don't understand... "

"Pfft, not likely," the Doctor blurted. "My Yaz is dead clever."

The policewoman failed to stifle the adoring smile she gave the Time Lady, but did manage to quickly return to what she was saying. "A... anyway... what I don't get is... " - she turned back to Mels - "... how do you know all of this? If your timeline has been erased, how are you even _here_?"

"Very good question," said the Doctor, eying Mels suspiciously. "My gut says to trust you, but it's been wrong before."

Mels visibly wilted at the accusation, and everyone noticed her glance to Amy for support. When the Scot just returned the questioning glance, the newcomer shrugged. "I think because I was, well, out of time at the, erm, time."

Graham blinked. "Y'wot?"

"It's weird, I know!" yelped Mels. "But time is weird! Things you wouldn't think would effect things do, and things that do don't! I know it makes no sense - with time, it shouldn't matter where I was, if all of reality was changed. But, it just _did_. Somehow, me being out of time managed to spare me from the changes in the timeline. Doctor, back me up."

The Time Lady nodded. "It's true, time _can_ be pretty timey-wimey sometimes... causality and all that can go out the window. But what do you mean, you were out of... " She stopped. "Wait - the one place I can think of where that would be a thing is... "

Now Mels nodded. "Zenobia."

Ryan grimaced. "There's a place called 'Xenophobia'?"

"_Zenobia_," clarified the Doctor. "A space station run by the Celestial Intervention Agency, which exists outside time itself. Basically, a Time Lord courtroom. You're right, though - it's not the best name. Even if names are all relative."

"Courtroom?" Instantly PC Khan kicked in. She stepped forward and frowned at Mels. "What exactly were you doing _in court_?"

"Yaz... " The Doctor reached out for her best friend's arm.

"It wasn't me on trial!" Mels insisted. "It's just... River can be quite naughty sometimes, and... "

"Who's River?" asked Ryan.

Mels visibly gulped, and looked again at Amy. "My sister," she eventually said. "Yours and Clara's biological child."

Amy's jaw, along with the Doctor's, dropped...

TO BE CONTINUED


	18. Chapter 18

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this__._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 18

_"I can't believe this is happening."_

_Amy looked sadly at Clara, then at the baby in her arms. "It's... not a bad thing, though." She turned back to her wife, fear in her eyes. "Is it?"_

_Shrugging, Clara sighed. "I guess not. It just means... we have two alien daughters now." She looked at the third person in the room. "But Doctor - are you_ absolutely_ sure?"_

_The Time Lord nodded slowly. "The tests are clear as a baby's bottom." He furrowed his bushy eyebrows. "Wait... that's not the right phrase. I mean... "_

_"_Doctor_... "_

_He cleared his throat at Amy's cold tone. "Right. Well... all the tests revealed the same thing. Due to the Silence's interference, River is now, for all intents and purposes, Gallifreyan."_

_"I can't believe it." Clara's voice was barely a whisper. "It doesn't make sense. How could genetic tampering change a person's entire species?!"_

_"Kovarian used very advanced science," replied the Doctor. "Besides, I don't think that was the only factor. Remember, Amy's IVF was performed here in the TARDIS, while we were in the time vortex."_

_"That also makes no sense!" the teacher yelped._

_"Honey, when has any of this made sense?" Amy sounded tired, resigned. "I guess you can blame me for not wanting to wait and get it done in a normal hospital."_

_The Doctor wanted to retort that the TARDIS was perfectly "normal", but Clara cut him off. "Don't say that, Amy. There's nothing that needs blaming. I wanted another child just as much as you. I just suppose... it'll make our lives easier. We won't have to worry about River being jealous of Melody."_

_"Speaking of which," said the Doctor, "she's desperate to see you. I can hear her on the other side of the door."_

_"Then I guess it's time to properly introduce her to her little sister," Amy said, her voice now certain. "Doctor, could you... ?"_

_"Of course, girls." He smiled warmly. "And don't worry - she'll be fine." With that, Mels was called into the room, and the Doctor quietly made his exit to give the Oswald-Ponds privacy._

_The ten-year-old Melody ran upto her adopted mothers, crying profusely. "Mummy, Mum, you're OK!" Her tears only intensified when she saw the small bundle in Amy's arms. "R... River... is she really... OK?"_

_"Yes, my angel," Clara soothed. "We know you were scared, but we're all safe. The Doctor got us away from the Silence and stopped them - they won't hurt us anymore."_

_"I was so scared... " Melody rubbed her eyes. "I thought I was gonna be alone again... "_

_"_Never_, Melody." Amy clenched her jaw. "Nothing could ever take us away from you." She reached out a free hand and stroked the girl's cheek, while Clara ran fingers through her dark hair. "But sweetie, there's something you need to know," the Scot continued. "The Silence did something to River, and... "_

_"You said she was OK!" cried Melody._

_"She_ is_, we promise," Clara insisted. "Infact, she's better than OK. Melody... she's like you. She's Gallifreyan."_

_The little girl gasped so hard the Oswald-Ponds wondered if the air would be sucked out the room. "_How_?!" Melody's eyes were like saucers._

_"We'll explain later, baby," Amy promised. "But right now, all you need to know is that we're all safe, and the Doctor will take us home as soon as possible."_

_"And we're staying home."_

_Amy darted her eyes to her wife. "Clara?"_

_"I can't do this anymore," the Impossible Girl said steadfastly. "I won't have anything else come between us again. We're going to go home to 2015, and we're staying there. We're done with all of this."_

_Now Amy's cheeks were tricking with tears. "What are you saying... ?"_

_"I'm saying that having my wife and new daughter being kidnapped and tested on has finally gotten it into my thick head that the only thing that matters to me now is my family. Me, you, Melody and River - together, safe. No more adventures, no more danger. Just the four of us... safe and sound."_

_"You... mean it... ?" Amy audibly gulped._

_In response, Clara leaned forward and claimed her wife's lips in a deep kiss. After eventually breaking, the teacher turned to Melody. "Would you mind staying on Earth, sweetie?"_

_Melody squealed. "I just want us all to be a family! I don't care where we are! I mean, I love the TARDIS and I love Uncle Doctor, but I also love our flat and I love Uncle Rory! And I just want us all to be safe and together, like you said, Mum said... oh! and I can teach River Gallifreyan and when she's older I can tell her about the Solitract and I can... "_

_Amy and Clara giggled as their daughter rambled on about the new life they would all lead. The new, normal..._

... Clara sat up in bed with a bolt, breathing heavily. Sweat was pouring down her brow, and she gulped as she struggled to compose herself.

She had been in hers and Missy's room for hours now, eventually nodding off. The day was just too stressful to endure. So much to think about, so much to digest...

Like another dream. Only this was far more vivid and insistent than any she had before. Almost like it was...

_No_. It could not be a _memory_. The strange woman she encountered earlier was lying, trying to mess with her mind.

It had to be all be a trick. There was no way what "Mels" said was true. That she was Clara and Amy's adopted daughter. That they were all meant to be a family. That Clara was meant to be with Amy.

The love of her...

No! No, no, no, _no_! _Missy_ was her wife, not Amy! Clara and the Scot were not meant to be: Clara accepted that long ago - she could not allow herself to believe otherwise. Not _now_.

After twenty years and five children, she could not believe her life with Missy was a lie...

TO BE CONTINUED


	19. Chapter 19

DISCLAIMERS/NOTES

1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun.

2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this.

3\. For story notes, see Part 1.

* * *

PART 19

It had to be lies. Mels _had_ to be trying to trick Clara.

The former teacher walked into the control room. She had rested for several hours, the events of the day - her and Missy's _anniversary_, lest it be forgotten! - taking its toll. Or perhaps it was the result of the touch-telepathy. Telepathy which _had_ to be fake. There was no way what Clara saw in her mind's eye was real.

But that was not the only shock Clara saw today. She also saw something she thought she would never see again.

The TARDIS. _His_ TARDIS.

No matter how long Clara spent with Missy, and as much as their TARDIS was her home, she would perhaps always think of the blue police box as _the_ TARDIS.

To be honest, Clara did not know what to think when that all-so-familiar noise filled the air. She spent twenty years without hearing it, yet it was clear now as when she was she was left alone on that unknown planet, as the blue box vanished and stranded her.

Indeed, the Impossible Girl just stood there, transfixed, as the time machine slowly materialised. She truly never thought she would see the "old girl" again, so to have it appear - especially _now_, on today of all days?

What would Clara have done if he stepped out, as he did numerous times in her and Amy's home? Would would he have said to her? What would _she_ have said to _him_? Would she have been cold, as cold as she was in her heart when he left her, or would she let out her hurt and pain in righteous fury?

Would she even still recognise him? Would he still be a crotchety old man, or instead young again? Perhaps even a... !

"Darling," said her wife as she looked up from the console, stopping Clara's unanswerable questions. The look of concern was evident. "How are you feeling?"

Clara held her head. "Tired," she admitted, while Missy strode to her. "But I've spent long enough in bed. I thought I better get up. How are the children?"

"They're unimportant," said Missy, causing Clara's eyes to bulge. Missy clearly realised what she said. "... I mean, what matters right now is you. You've been through alot today."

Sighing, the Impossible Girl nodded. "Yeah, I have."

"What did that horrible girl do to you, angel?" asked the Time Lady.

"I... don't know how to explain." Clara shrugged. "But it doesn't matter."

"Of course it matters!" Missy frowned deeply. "She hurt you, darling. I cannot allow that - you should know that by now." She took Clara's hand and led her to an ornate chair, the only piece of furniture in the control room. "Now, tell me _exactly_ what happened."

Clara hesitated. Should she explain what Mels told her? _Showed_ her? Frankly, Clara did not want to: saying it all aloud might make it seem true, that Mels was telling the truth. Because no matter how hard Clara tried, she could not get the words nor images out of her mind.

She and Amy... together. With a daughter. _Daughters_. And Mels... Mels was _her daughter_.

No. No! Clara refused to believe it. She _could not_. To do so would betray the life she had with Missy, the family they built together. Yes, Clara already _had_ a family: a devoted wife and five wonderful children. _They_ were what mattered now. Long ago she stopped thinking of what she lost with Amy, the family they would never have.

But... now, apparently, she had seen it.

"Clara... talk to me."

Clara gulped at Missy's plea. She looked into eyes as old as time itself, eyes which once carried nothing but evil, but for the past two decades Clara could see the love in them - the love for _her_. She could not give that up. Amy did not want her. The Doctor abandoned her. _Missy_ was there for her when she needed love, and gave her more than she ever deserved.

"Like... like I said," Clara began, "she said she was my daughter. _Mine_. Not _ours_."

A look of utter disgust crossed Missy's face. "Impossible. There's no one else you could have children with." Again Clara blinked at the words, and again Missy realised her faux pas. "I _mean_, there's no way we wouldn't be together, my sweetheart. I'd never _allow_ anyone to take you away from me. I'd rescue you - just as I did today. And I'd certainly be quick enough to do so before you were taken advantage of."

"I know," Clara said softly. "We... we belong together."

Missy stroked her cheek. "Never forget that, Clara. _Ever_."

The former teacher bit her lip to stem her emotions boiling over. "Look, can we not talk about this, at least not now?"

Missy sighed in obvious annoyance. "We must talk about it sooner or later, Clara. You have to be honest with me, just as I've always been honest with you."

Clara managed a smile. It was true: the Time Lady never lied to her, even before they got together. She demanded, argued and teased - but never lied. Well, apart from the 3W thing. "We will, I promise," Clara said. "But at the moment, I'm quite drained, to put it mildly. It's not everyday I get kidnapped." She tried to bring some levity, though was that for Missy's benefit or hers?

Accepting the situation for now, Missy nodded. "Twice in twenty years," she mused.

Now Clara managed a smirk, though it was less than full. "More like three times."

Missy rolled her eyes. "_Fine_. Still, not a bad average, all in all. Certainly better than your time with _him_." The Time Lady only alluded to the Doctor infront of Clara to paint a negative picture of him, but Clara accepted that: he did leave her alone with child on a deserted planet.

The Gallifreyan looked at Clara, all momentary mirth gone. "I'd never let anything hurt you, Clara. You know that, don't you?"

She nodded. "I do, Missy. Really." With that, they kissed lovingly, Missy engulfing her Impossible Girl in her arms. Once their lips separated, Clara rested her chin on her wife's shoulder.

But the images of _Amy_ as her wife lingered...

TO BE CONTINUED


	20. Chapter 20

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 20

"You are going to tell me everything I need to know, because there's too much at stake here to be messing around."

Mels sighed at the Doctor's demand. The two were alone now, Amy needing to rest after all the recent stress, and Team TARDIS deciding to give the Gallifreyans some conference time. "Look, I know it's alot to take in... "

"Yeah, you _could_ say that," the Time Lady quipped. "First, there are these glowin' cracks in walls poppin' up all over the place, and all over _time_, apparently. Then I find one of my closest ever friends, who was trapped in the past for nearly forty years. Oh, and that also involved me realisin' I'd forgotten her in the first place! And her fiancee... _and_ her best friend! Then you pop up and claim to be their daughter from an alternate timeline. But not an alternate _parallel_ timeline - an alternate version of _this_ timeline, as apparently this isn't the one we should all be livin'. Am I right so far?"

"Pretty much... " Mels said meekly.

"Good, good. Always wanna be right." The Doctor began pacing. "Then, ontop of that, my oldest enemy tricked Clara into marrying her, and they even have children - the oldest of which, you claim, _started_ this whole thing in the first place."

"Yes, we have to go back... stop Delgado from... "

"I ain't finished yet," interrupted the Time Lady. "To cap _aaaalll_ that off, you then claim to have a sister, who's actually a _criminal_ who spends most of her time locked up in a Time Lord prison!"

Mels waved her arms in an attempt to pause the Doctor. "Look, I can explain everything. Well, not _everything_, as there's stuff you've apparently yet to get around to doing."

"Such as?"

The young woman shrugged. "Aunty Doctor... I know you like surprises. I can't tell you. All I think I should tell you about is _this_ situation right now."

The Doctor placed her hands on a her hips and let out a breath. "You're right. Can't know too much 'bout y'own future... " All the temper seemed to drain out of her. "Sorry 'bout all that. Shouldn't have gone on. I'm not usually like that with this regeneration. Usually alot calmer. It's just... "

Mels smiled. "I know, Doctor... "

"That's just it," she mused. "You seem t'know alot about me, while I know nothin' about you."

"You will," insisted the young woman. "Once we stop Delgado, everything will be fixed. Amy and Clara will be together, these cracks will be gone, and you can get on with... " She halted. "Right. Stop there, Melody." She then slumped her shoulders. "Look, I know you don't fully trust me. Would touch-telepathy help?"

"Unfortunately, I'm still kinda recoverin' from rememberin' Amy and Clara and all that. I might go bonkers with another one." The Doctor bit her lip. "Guess I'll have to go with my gut and trust you." She then resumed pacing. "OK, let's break it down: first thing, Delgado escaped the Time War lock, orchestrated Clara and Missy gettin' together - as well as his own birth - then merged with his younger self to ensure a timeloop continued."

Mels nodded. The Doctor continued. "You were able to escape being erased 'cos you were on Zenobia lookin' for your sister. So my next question is: what exactly was River doing in prison?"

Mels gulped. "It was nothing serious, honest. But like I said, she can be a little... difficult, sometimes. Has boundary issues, you could say. Kind of a believer of 'possession is nine tenths', that kind of thing."

"So she's a thief." The Time Lady's eyes narrowed.

"Like I said, nothing serious!" Mels began to squirm. "She's never hurt anyone, Doctor!"

"Theft always hurts someone, Mels."

With that, Mels narrowed her own eyes. "How exactly did you get the TARDIS, again?"

The Doctor's eyes bulged, and she choked when noises sounded from the ceiling, almost like chuckling. "Don't you take _her_ side!" she said, raising her head. She then looked back to Mels. "_Anyway_," she hissed, "I take it you were visiting her?"

"It's all very timey-wimey," replied Mels. "I went to visit her before the timeline had changed, but when I found out about it, I was just hoping she was there, that she'd be protected by Delgado's meddling, like I was - but she wasn't. I was there during a time River _wasn't_ incarcerated. So she was erased when the timeline changed. Without Amy and Clara getting together, she was never born." Mels fell silent, and she closed her eyes.

Sadness filled the Doctor's face. "I'm sorry."

"That's why you don't remember her either." Mels was saddened to know the Doctor had no memory of her history with River. She then frowned. "Though I don't understand how you forgot my parents, too."

The Doctor looked away. "That had nothing to do with this. That happened due to... something else."

Mels tilted her head, but decided to let it go. There were bigger issues to deal with. "Well, it's vital we fix things. Not just to get my family back, but for the whole universe."

"Wot?" The Time Lady scrunched her face. "What're you talking about?"

Taking a deep breath, Mels shook her head. "Without giving too much away... in the far future, something will happen. A crisis. There'll be a moment when all of existence will hinge on River."

The Doctor looked confused. "... not me?"

Mels actually laughed. "Not _everything_ is about you, Aunty Doctor."

"Well, sort of." The Time Lady pouted. "I mean, we're talkin' about _my_ niece... though I assume you're callin' me 'aunty' in the 'friend-of-the-family' sense."

"Obviously," said Mels, rolling her eyes. "Your biological family is big enough." Suddenly her eyes widened, terrified at what she let slip.

Fortunately, the Doctor seemed to misunderstand. "True, my family was quite vast." A shade of darkness covered her face, and Mels realised she was thinking of past loved ones, those no longer in reach. It quickly passed, however. "But how is River so important? I mean, _everyone's_ important, but... well, y'know what I mean."

"Amy and Clara will be there when the crisis happens," explained Mels. "There's this... thing... a device that... look, I know you don't want spoilers, so I'll leave it at that... a device that River will use to save the universe."

"If you know all this," asked the Doctor, "can't _we_ do it?"

Mels shook her head. "Mum - Clara - will encode River's biological signature into the device. Once that's done, River and _only_ River will be able to activate it."

"Then we'll just go there and give it someone else's biosignature."

"We can't," insisted Mels. "I've tried. For some reason, that point in the future is locked off. There's no way to get there now. The state the universe is in by then... time travel doesn't work. I don't know if it's the cracks that're somehow impeding getting there. But for whatever reason, it's a no-go area. Which means the universe will end at that point."

The Doctor huffed. "That's pretty defeatist."

Mels' tone was absolute. "Without Amy and Clara being together, there's no River. And with no River, there's no one to pilot... OK, gave _that_ bit away... the device that'll end the crisis. And with no one to end the crisis... the universe _itself_ will end. It _will_ happen, Doctor. I've seen it." At the Time Lady's quizzical look, Mels elaborated. "While on Zenobia, I was able to use a time viewer. I saw it all... the end of everything. I tried to get the Time Lords on the station to help me, but they just thought I was making it up to exonerate my sister."

The Doctor groaned. "Stuffy elders... never could see the big picture, despite what they claimed."

"You have to help," gasped Mels. "Please, Aunty Doctor. You know I'm telling the truth. You _know_ Amy and Clara belong together. You can't tell me you don't."

The Doctor looked into the young woman's pleading eyes. "I guess there's only one way to be sure." When Mels looked at her in puzzlement, the Time Lady clenched her jaw. "Show me."

TO BE CONTINUED


	21. Chapter 21

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 21

Yaz opened the door and peeked inside. She probably should be doing this, but her police training - not to mention a healthy dose of guilt - made her do so. There on the medibay bed, was Amy Pond, sitting upright, head down. "Hey," said Yaz tentatively. "Mind if I come in?"

The 62-year-old looked up and furrowed her brow at her visitor. Clearly, she was surprised at who it was. "Yaz, right?"

The officer stepped inside and nodded. Amy had not technically said no. "That's right. Yasmin Khan - Yaz to my friends."

"So... should I call you Yasmin?"

Yaz shook her head. "'Course not. I mean, I know we don't really know eachother, but we have a mutual friend."

"Ah, right." Amy left her gaze and returned to looking at her lap. "Did h... _she_ send you into check on me?"

"No," Yaz replied, once again put off by this woman's attitude. But she pushed it aside, determined to make an effort. "I'm a police officer. I was just coming to see if you were alright. Do you need anything?"

The Scot chuckled, but it was completely without mirth. "Howabout the last 36 years back?"

At that, Yaz sighed. Any resentment she had towards this woman, any jealousy she felt at Amy's familiarity with the Doctor - _too much_ familiarity for Yaz's liking - diminished as she dwelt on this poor woman's situation. Robbed of decades of her life, a life she was seemingly supposed to have with the woman she loved.

Yaz could relate to that. Not the robbed part, but the need to be with her soulmate. Though obviously, the Doctor was not Yaz's soulmate. That required the Time Lady to feel the same way...

Before she could get bogged down in pathetic pining, Yaz strode on. "I'm sorry, I can't begin to imagine what you've been through." She cautiously sat down next to Amy, who fortunately made no attempt to stop her. The '70s bartender was probably too exausted to do so: it was partially why she was in the medibay right now. Clearly, the events of today, not to mention the apparent truth of Mels, was too much - she needed to rest.

"No, you can't," Amy said bluntly. "I don't know how long you've been doing this, how long you've been with the Doctor, but whatever you've done, it's nothing compared to what happened to me. I lost everything. My fiancee, my home, my family - _everything_. A complete and utter psychopath took everything that mattered to me. She took Clara."

Yaz remained silent, deciding not to mention the fact Team TARDIS had been through the wars also: it would not matter to Amy. Yaz doubted the landlady was the selfish, heartless type, but she had 36 years to mourn for what she lost. And obviously, she never got over it.

Of course, that was completely understandable. Though Yaz never had the opportunity to be confronted with such things in her short time on the force - settling parking disputes was hardly comparable - she certainly read up on people and families losing loved ones during her training. Then she finally experienced it - to a certain extent - with Prem.

"And now it seems I was never even supposed to," continued Amy wistfully. "This girl... this Mels... "

"We don't know for sure that she is who she says she is," said Yaz. She did not mean to sound cruel, but could not help being more practical.

"She _is_," the Scot insisted. "I know it. I can _feel_ it."

Biting her lip, Yaz decided not to challenge her, at least directly. "Well, we can be sure of one thing - the Doctor will sort everything out. She'll fix this."

At that, Amy scoffed. "Should've sorted it out at the time."

Yaz blinked. "She told you - her memories of you and Clara were erased. She would've come for you if she could. I know it."

Amy looked at her. "How long have you travelled with hi... her?"

"Nearly a year," Yaz replied. "Why?"

The landlady raised a brow. "I was with him for five years - three of them with Clara also. You'll see - the Doctor has limits."

"I know she has limits," Yaz said, raising her voice ever-so. "I've seen her fail. I've seen her beat herself up for not being able to save everyone - even those who don't deserve it. But she always does her best."

"Not always," said Amy. "More than once he asked Clara and me if he was a 'good man'. I've seen him at his worst. You think you've seen the Doctor make hard decisions? I've seen him be outright _cruel_."

"The Doctor's not cruel!" Yaz barely kept her tone. "She always does everythin' she can to help everyone. She's amazin' - perfect! And she's my best friend."

Amy was silent for a brief moment. "You say that like you're the first."

Yaz clenched her jaw. "No, I'm under no delusions. I know there were many before me, and even if I didn't, I can see howmuch she cares for you. Which is why I can't understand how you can say such things about her. Why are you only thinking the worst of her now?"

"I've had decades think nice thoughts about the Doctor," said Amy bitterly. "Got abit harder to stay charitable once I entered decade four."

Yaz had no response to that. Instead, she stood up before she could let her anger get the better of her. Of course, it was mixed in with self-hate: she was understanding of this poor woman's plight, but just could not listen to anyone saying bad things about the woman she loved. "I'm sorry, I think I should go." She strode back to the door, but was stopped by Amy's exasperated voice.

"No, look - _I'm_ sorry." Yaz turned to see the '70s bartender get off the bed to her feet. "It's just... "

Suddenly a loud, pained scream came from several rooms away, and both women's eyes bulged. "That was the Doctor!" Yaz cried, and she and Amy ran out the medibay towards the source of the noise. On the way, they met up with Ryan and Graham, who clearly heard the scream too.

"That was... !" Ryan gasped.

"_I know_!" Yaz simply huffed, before all four reached the console room. The sight meeting them filled Yaz's heart with terror.

The woman she cherished was on the floor, holding her head in agony, with Mels in a similar position a few feet opposite.

Instantly the policewoman dashed down to her Doctor, landing on her knees to tend to her. Meanwhile, Amy did the same for Mels. "Doctor, what happened?!" Yaz choked. "Are you alright?"

A deep groan escaped the Time Lady. "Knew it was too soon t'do touch-telepathy again... " She took a gulp of air as Yaz almost pawed at her. "But it's true... " She looked directly at Mels, who was being tended to by Amy.

"What's that, Doctor?" Ryan asked.

The Doctor stared wide-eyed. "Everything she said is true... "

TO BE CONTINUED


	22. Chapter 22

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 22

To say Delgado was concerned would be an understatement.

Ever since his birth mother was rescued from the strange young woman who abducted her, he feared what it meant.

No, not feared. He _knew_, deep down, time had finally run out. His true origin, let alone all his machinations, would be discovered.

Delgado could tell from his parents' description of what happened, what it meant. Despite his best efforts, not _every_ part of his work was cleaned up. Something - or rather, some_one_ survived his time meddling. This strange woman, whoever she was, existed from the previous timeline, the timeline Delgado wrote over to get his family back.

He should have known it would happen eventually. His Gallifreyan mother always considered it a top priority to avoid the Doctor, to never encounter him again. But Missy never knew that was Delgado's mission too. Missy thought she was the only one in the family keeping tabs on the artron levels, to ensure they never visited a place and/or time where her former "best friend" was also... little did she know her efforts were always double-checked by her firstborn son.

Delgado was very well aware of the stakes, of what would happen if they encountered the do-gooding Doctor again. Despite his manoeuvrings, despite Missy tying her into a relationship through marriage and further children, it was known by both in their hearts of hearts, Clara's devotion to the Time Lady - unlike in Delgado's original timeline - was resigned. The only reasons Clara was with Missy was because she believed she was abandoned by her "true love" Amy and the Doctor, as well as accidently impregnated. But Delgado knew his own conception was carefully orchestrated by Missy. After all, he made sure.

He bristled as he thought again of Amy Pond being his Human mother's "true love". Sickening. Delgado knew the truth: despite having to be tricked into being with her in this reality, Clara Oswald still belonged to the Mistress. Delgado _knew_ it! Lived through it already! Though his timeline was wiped out - one of countless so by the Time Wars - he refused to accept it gone forever. He was determined to recreate his family, and actually succeeded. By breaking the timelock and travelling to a point Missy's love for Clara was still one-sided, he saved his family from never existing.

But it was a constant struggle since. In the early days, it was a case of assuring Clara she belonged with Missy in her TARDIS: that alone was a long and arduous process. Then, after the Impossible Girl accepted their relationship and agreed to more offspring, Missy's goal - and Delgado's, secretly - was to stay away from the Doctor. For despite everything, the Time Lady feared Clara would return to his side given the chance. Missy would never admit it, but Delgado knew.

And now a new threat arose. This woman, this "Mels". Clara never got a chance to explain who she exactly was, but Delgado sensed it. Perhaps because _he_ was the one who changed the timeline in the first place, he had an innate sense of who she was and where she came from. Mels was from the original timeline, the one emerging after the Time Wars. Where Clara married Amy instead and had, at least, Mels. Again Delgado felt sick.

Now he was in a quandary. Delgado wanted to track this young woman down and take her out, before she undid everything he accomplished. But to do so would risk coming in contact with the Doctor, something his family strived to avoid for twenty years. Clara could not risk being exposed to the Time Lord again.

Could Delgado slip away and take care of Mels without Missy finding out? Probably not: after Clara's abduction, his Gallifreyan mother locked down their TARDIS. No vortex manipulator could bypass that.

There was only one other option. Delgado knew what what he had to do. He hated the very thought, but it was for Clara's own good...

TO BE CONTINUED


	23. Chapter 23

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 23

"Mother - come quick!"

Missy looked up from her computations. After her wife's emergence from their room, Clara insisted on seeing the children, to tell them she was alright now. Missy knew she was _far_ from alright, of course, but could see the need in her darling's eyes: Clara was desperate to calm their children's worries. The Time Lady let the Human go while she continued keeping track of their TARDIS' course, making sure they stayed one step ahead of the Doctor's.

But the yell from Delgado filled Missy with fea... concern. She was already moving away from the control console to the doorway, where their first son was standing. "What's happened?! Where's Clara?!" Missy instinctively knew her angel was in trouble.

Delgado led her to the sickbay, both their strides quickly going from a brisk walk to a dash. "She collapsed in the corridor!"

"_WHAT_?!" Missy's booming voice would have been heard in the vacuum of space.

Their TARDIS, always mindful of its owner's needs - and fearful of punishment - easily led them to the sickbay. Delgado continued as they entered the room. "I saw her walking, then she held her head in pain and just... keeled over. It's like when she goes too long without her medication." He was referring to the treatment Clara required now she had Gallifreyan traits: when Missy gave Clara the ability to regenerate, it meant the Impossible Girl had to take meds every so often to combat the psychological strain. Human minds were not built to cope with the mental properties of a Time Lord, and though Missy only gave her a regeneration cycle and infinitesimal slowing of age, it still meant Clara got occasional headaches.

"She must have been overwhelmed by the stress of today," choked Missy as she reached her wife's bedside. Clara looked so still, already hooked up to a bioscanner. Delgado must have taken the initiative and seen to his birth mother before alerting the Time Lady. Though Missy felt like chastising the boy for not informing her _immediately_, Clara's welfare was more important. It was more important than anything. Instead, Missy lovingly stroked her Human's sweatsoaked brow. "My darling Clara... "

Something was building inside the Time Lady. Something she _always_ felt, but Clara's influence helped calm it somewhat. Fittingly, now with her wife in pain, it was back in full force. Rage. Blinding, furious _rage_. "This is that girl's fault. I'm going to find her, and I'm going to make her pay for what she's done." In the back of her mind, Missy knew this was contravening her plan to stay away from the Doctor, but her need for revenge made her ignore common sense.

"Mother... are you sure that's wise?" Delgado looked worried, almost... scared.

"Delgado, you have been treading on thin ice all day," Missy replied, well, icily. "Question me again and you won't like the repercussions. Now, stay with Clara and make sure she doesn't get any worse. I'm going back to the control room."

"Mother... ?"

Missy looked up at him. "I'm going to find this girl - this _Mels_ \- wherever and whenever she is, and I'm going to _end_ her." She took one last gaze and caress of her comatose wife. "I promised no one will hurt you and get away with it, my love. And I always make good on my promises." She then clenched her jaw, turned away and marched out.

Missy never noticed the empty sedative syringe Delgado had hidden behind his back...

TO BE CONTINUED


	24. Chapter 24

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 24

The TARDIS materialised on the street corner and seconds later, the Doctor and her friends emerged. The Time Lady once again scanned the area, looking for any evidence of their target. When none was apparent, she hissed. "I was _sure_ this time."

"Of what?" asked Yaz, coming up beside her heart's desire.

"I was sure Missy's TARDIS was here, now," the Doctor responded. "The artron levels are through the roof, so to speak. She has to be the cause." They landed around the mid-1990s, in Norfolk, in a quiet high street highlighted by a small clocktower. Nothing seemed out the ordinary for the time.

That did not stop Ryan cocking a brow at a nearby videoshop. "That picture quality's rubbish," he said, referring to the television sets in the window.

"A decade of HD and you've already forgotten what TV was like when you were a kid," Graham grumbled. "I wonder if _Midas Touch_ is on. Loved that show. Criminally shortlived."

"Was _Hollyoaks_ around at this time?" Yaz asked. "I always watched that growin' up."

"Fam, we're not here to sightsee - for a change," said the Doctor, and her team piped down, Yaz in particular looking guilty. Noticing, the Time Lady lightly put a hand on her shoulder. "Right now there are more important things t'do."

"Right," piped up Mels. Amy was almost clinging to the young woman. "If they're not here, then we should get going."

The Doctor looked at her, and thought back to what transpired. Despite the risk and resultant discomfort, the touch-telepathy confirmed beyond any doubt Mels was who she said she was, and everything she told them was true. After both Gallifreyans recovered from the ordeal, a plan was quickly formulated: they would find Delgado and make him tell them at what point he caused the fork in the timeline - when exactly his changes disrupted the original flow of events.

Truth be told, however, the Doctor had a hard time believing they _should_. Despite her now believing Mels' story, surely there was another way to fix things. Mels' foreboding of the end of the universe in the far future _had_ to be alterable without the existence of her sister River.

At that, something else stirred in the Time Lady. Mels refused to divulge anymore - even admitting to consciously only showing what was needed to be seen in their telepathic communication - but the Doctor felt... something... when she heard that name. For some reason, she knew this "River" meant a great deal to her. In much the way she, before her memory was restored, would have subconscious flashbacks to Amy and Clara, there was something in the back of her mind about River...

Regardless, the Doctor could not ignore the fact, if they undid Delgado's tampering, everything which _did_ happen in this new timeline would be, well, undone. Was that right? Who knew what _else_ might happen if they messed anymore with the timeline? Was it better to leave things as was, and hope for the best concerning this potential future crisis?

Then again, if there was a chance to give Amy and Clara a full, happy life together...

Before the Time Lady could ponder anymore on the matter, she was brought back to now by Ryan's voice. "Doctor, look - it's another crack!"

"Oh no," groaned Mels. "They're getting worse."

Indeed. This one was not even in a secluded area. It was right out in the open. People were stopping in the street to stare at it. Before either the Doctor or Mels could make a move to tackle the anomaly, however, raised voices were heard. _Very_ raised, as they from inside a house.

Two people stormed out of the abode in a raging argument. The Doctor could not help herself: she turned from the glowing crack and strode towards the shouting pair. As she neared, she saw the two were still in their pyjamas!

"You monster! Help! I woke up and this man was _in my bed_!"

"_Your_ bed?! _I_ live here, not you! I'm gonna do you for breaking and entering!"

"People, _please_!" The Doctor's eyes widened and turned to see Yaz at her side. She could not help the swell of pride in her face. Trust PC Khan to throw herself into this domestic. "Let's all calm down! Now, what exactly is going on here?"

"I was having a late morning lie-in and I wake up to find this man I've never seen before... _in my bed_!" The woman was understandably in tears.

Rage filled both the Doctor and Yaz, until the man spoke up. "That's bullshit! I've lived here for years! _She's_ the intruder, not me!"

Something was wrong here, and not in the obvious way. The time travellers glanced down at the pair's hands. Both had wedding rings on. Was this a case of an affair gone sour? Was one of them indeed guilty of the most sickening of offences?

"What are you looking at?" snapped the man, then followed the two women's gaze and saw the ring on his finger. "What the... ? I'm not married!"

"Me neither," said the woman after viewing her own hand. "What the hell is going... ?"

Suddenly, a loud crackling noise filled the air, and everyone on the street screamed in shock. The Doctor and her companions gasped as the glowing crack actually grew in size, expanding rapidly. The light was almost blinding, but the worst was yet to come.

The anomaly, without warning, created a vacuum, and everyone instantly felt themselves being drawn towards it. People instinctively grabbed for whatever hold they could get, but many were unfortunate: at terrifying speed, several people were sucked into the glowing light, like a black hole only blinding white.

The Doctor managed to snatch a lightpost, and held onto Yaz for dear life. Meanwhile, Ryan sandwiched Graham against the TV shop window, even as the sewer pipe he was holding threatened to wrench from the wall. And Amy and Mels hung onto an open manhole, its cover actually ripped off the pavement and flown into the glow...

Tears flew from the Doctor's eyes as she held on tight, not even enough strength left in her to cry out. She watched, however, as the two people, arguing just seconds ago, tumbled into the waiting golden whiteness, never to be seen again.

Then, as quickly as it happened, it stopped. The crack seemed to seal itself, and all the air instantly returned to the street. As a result, the area was filled with the sound of dozens falling back to the ground with thuds, followed by groans of pain.

After several moments of eery calm, the Doctor groggily looked up and again took in her surroundings. The street was now much emptier - at least twenty people were gone. She glanced at her hand and could not help the sigh of relief as Yaz slowly pushed herself off the cement. She then turned and saw the rest of her friends had survived too.

"Wh... what was... that... ?" moaned Yaz.

"I... " The Doctor took in a gulp. "I dunno... but we have to... t'help these... these people... "

"Oh, these people are the least of your concerns," came a cold, arrogant voice.

The Doctor's eyes widened at the unmistakable sight.

A middle-aged woman, with blonde hair and a dark business suit, stood above her... sonic pistol in her hand, and red phone box behind her...

TO BE CONTINUED


	25. Chapter 25

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 25

Missy surveyed the area, and could not help the sly smile forming on her face. She never got tired of the sight of people in distress.

Indeed, whatever her TARDIS landed her in the middle of, it was quite the scene: dozens of people struggling to get to their feet, no doubt just having suffered some sort of ordeal. Missy was just saddened she was not the cause. Still, she could almost taste the fear and pain in the air - it was delicious.

But that could wait. She was here for a reason, and as she scanned the street again, she focused on it. Once she caught sight of her goal, her eyes widened. "_There_ you are!"

Mels, still on her knees, met her gaze, looking like a deer in the headlights.

"I've been looking for you, my dear," the Time Lady sneered. "I read a huge amount of artron energy in this time and place, and had to be sure. I'm _so_ glad I was right."

"Leave her alone," growled the blonde woman in the large coat at Missy's feet.

"Be quiet," Missy said dismissively, before returning her attention to Mels. "I'm surprised your vortex manipulator has such a high reading, but it doesn't matter: I've found you, and now you'll pay for what you've done to... "

"I didn't use my manipulator," interrupted the young woman.

At that, the Time Lady frowned, then, as if her eyes were drawn to it, saw the blue police box.

Inhaling silently, Missy took a beat to calm herself. She should not have been surprised: she assumed the Doctor, upon materialising between her, Clara and Mels, stayed to help the girl who kidnapped her wife. Still, to be faced with the prospect of standing off with her old frenemy again, after two decades of staying away, was slightly worryi... concerning.

But where was he? Missy again looked around, trying to spot the Doctor. She did not see the old, bushy-browed man she last encountered him as, meaning he could be anyone of the dozens present. However, she quickly noticed a small group forming around Mels, and narrowed her eyes at one in particular. "Not so tall now, are you?"

Graham scowled. "I beg your pardon?!"

"Wrong one, I'm afraid," huffed the blonde woman, now on her feet. "Once again you prove your fallibility. You always prided yourself on recognising me no matter what I looked like."

It took a second for the stranger's words to sink in, then Missy gasped again - audibly this time. Her eyes bulging, she could not resist looking the woman up and down. "_Well_, I must say... this is unexpected." She smirked evily. "For once, I'm genuinely at a loss for words."

The Doctor remained stoney-faced. "Shame that, 'cos I have _loads_ of questions. Though none for you."

Missy tilted her head. "No?"

"I don't need to ask _you_ anything." If looks could kill... "I know _exactly_ what you've done. You took one of the most important people in my life and forced her to do... Gallifrey-knows-what. How'd you do it? Hypnosis? Drugs? Or did you flat-out... " - she evidently found the next part hard to say - "... _force_ whatever you did onto her?"

As always, Missy was unfazed. "I thought you had no questions for me?"

Before anything else could be said or done, a fist came flying into Missy's line of sight, and connected with her jaw. The rogue Time Lady went down like a sack of spuds. All the Doctor's companions gasped. "You _bitch_!" her assailant screamed. The Time Lady looked up through blurred eyes, and once again, was at a loss for words.

An aged Amy Pond stood above her, bruised knuckles and eyes on fire. "_Where is she_?! _WHERE'S CLARA_?!"

Oh shit. Of all the things Missy expected, this was the very last. How the _fuck_ was her wife's ex-fiancee here?!

"Amy, calm down... " The Doctor soothed, while her companions attempted to pull the Scot back.

But Amy was having none of it. "_36 years_! You left me there to _ROT_ for _36 years_! You took my Clara and left me in that Godforsaken time! _You took my life with her away_, _and now you're gonna PAY_!" With that, she straddled the Time Lady and gripped her throat tight.

"Amy, _no_!" cried the Doctor, while Yaz, Mels and Ryan tried wrenching her away. "Don't do this! It isn't right!" Perhaps all the civilians where still shaken by the chaos caused by the anomalous crack, or perhaps they were just stunned by the scene infront of them; for whatever reason, they all just looked on, almost like it was car crash TV.

"_WHERE IS SHE_?! _WHERE IS SHE_?!" Amy was like a feral animal.

Even if Missy wanted to talk, she could not - not with Amy's old-yet-still-strong hands crushing her windpipe. Just a little more pressure, and she might start glowing...

"_Mummaaaa_!"

The shrill scream broke the madness. Everyone turned their gaze to see a small boy dashing to them: who was _this_?

"Cole, _no_!" An older lad was running behind him. Both had emerged from the red phone box.

"Let go of my Mumma!" the child sobbed, as he joined in the fracas. Naturally he had no chance prising Amy's hands off Missy, but his presence seemed to get through even the Scot's red haze, as she began loosening her grip on Missy's throat.

Unfortunately, it was too late: in the scuffle, both Missy and Cole's hands touched Mels' vortex manipulator, and in a flash of light, the two Masters-Oswalds where gone...

TO BE CONTINUED


	26. Chapter 26

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 26

Space. Cold, barren and oh-so vast.

Missy felt it before. The unease of floating, of having nothing solid underfoot. The harshness of breathing in literally a vacuum. The chill on her skin, a result of no star in the vicinity to give warmth.

She opened her eyes, knowing what she would see. Nothing. Nothing but blackness and the white dots of ever-distant stars. Yes, Missy had been deserted, lost in space before. And she did not like it one bit.

It was all that girl's fault. Missy touched Mels' vortex manipulator, and must have accidentally activated it, as she was now floating aimlessly in the open void of space. Why the hell had Mels evidently visited _open space_ before? Then Missy realised: the girl's device must have either malfunctioned, or been even more inferior than she thought. Instead of taking the Time Lady somewhere Mels had been previously, it teleported her to just outside it.

Missy's eyes widened as she noticed something in the near distance. Her jaw dropped at the sight. Her youngest son, Cole, was drifting listlessly along with her. Missy could see the fear in his eyes, and though Gallifreyans - even half-Human hybrids - could survive the unforgiving environment of open space for a few minutes, he was already struggling to cope. The ten-year-old held his throat as he strained to get air into his lungs, and tears were pooling under his eyes.

Missy tried changing her momentum, to somehow swim in the void and reach her child. But he was too far away, and Missy could already feel herself choking. Her lungs began to sore at the lack of oxygen, and in the back of her mind she cursed her luck. Having done it once, she hoped to never suffocate in space again.

Cole reached an arm out to his Gallifreyan mother, his mouth open wide in a scream Missy could not hear. She had to do something, _fast_. Even if both of them regenerated, it would do no good: without aid, they would just keep suffocating and dying, until mother and son ran out their cycles, leaving their final incarnations to drift lifelessly forever.

Missy continued trying to push herself towards Cole, but he was frustratingly far. Then Missy's own survival instincts kicked in. She realised her own vortex manipulator, not directly used for many years, automatically kept a record of everywhere she went. Unfortunately, it was also severely damaged in the contact with Mels' manipulator, so Missy only had enough power for one last jump. Her device would not survive the encounter, so the location of here - wherever here _was_ \- would be lost.

But she _had_ to get back to Earth - not only to survive, but to make sure Clara was not taken from her. Her wife was the most important thing to Missy; certainly more important than…

She looked back up at Cole, abject terror on his face, as he got further and further away.

Fuck it: one less mouth to feed - and she and Clara could always have another kid, anyway. Activating her manipulator, Missy pressed the recall button...

TO BE CONTINUED


	27. Chapter 27

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 27

"What have you done?! What have you _done_?!"

Everyone stared wide-eyed at Delgado's scream. The Doctor, Mels, Amy and the rest were all shocked at what just transpired.

Delgado cursed himself for a fool. He should never have let things get out of hand. He should never have let his mother go after the Doctor. He should never have let Missy find Mels. And he _certainly_ should never have let his youngest brother escape the family TARDIS.

As a result, his mother and Cole were now gone - teleported away by Mels' vortex manipulator. There was no way to get them back, other than the obvious.

"It... it was an accident," stammered Mels.

_Bullshit_. Delgado saw what was happening, saw his Gallifreyan parent being literally strangled to death - or at least regeneration - by an aged and crazed Amy Pond. Indeed, that was why little Cole ran out the TARDIS in the first place: when Delgado was watching what was happening outside on the viewing screen, he failed to notice his brother walk into the control room and also see Missy being assaulted. Unable to react in time, Delgado was stunned when Cole dashed out the time machine to help their Gallifreyan mother. It was just the latest in a list of mistakes the oldest Masters-Oswald child made.

No, he never should have let Missy track down the Doctor in the first place. He knew what would happen; Missy discovering Delgado's direct role in bringing his parents together was not a problem per se, nor necessarily was the possibility of her discovering his true origin. But in going after the do-gooding Doctor, it threatened his birth mother's place with them. The Doctor - and Amy, though Rassilon knows how _she_ turned back up - had a chance to retake Clara.

But what else could Delgado do? He already crossed a line by drugging his Human mother, sending her into a mock, though ultimately harmless, coma-like state, to ensure she was not a direct factor. With her safely locked down in their TARDIS' sickbay, she was in no condition to enter proceedings. Once everything was sorted, Delgado planned to awaken Clara and fob off her condition by reiterating what he told Missy: she "collapsed due to the stress of the situation".

But he should not have underestimated the Mistress: Delgado hoped the Time Lady would be too concerned for her wife to notice him lower their TARDIS' lockdown, so he could quickly take out Mels on his own. However, he forgot once Missy decided on something, that was that. Delgado should have known she would only double her efforts to seek out and destroy Mels for "causing Clara's collapse". And obviously, he had no hope of talking her out of it - despite his machinations and knowledge, Delgado had no actual power over his Time Lady mother. He knew very well Clara was the only one in all time and space with even the faintest _smidge_ of sway over the Mistress.

In trying to keep his parents out of it, Delgado messed up. And now his mother and youngest brother were lost.

"_There_!" Amy's declaration brought Delgado out of his musings, as she saw and recognised the red phone box for what it was. "She's in there!" As quick as she could, the 62-year-old scrambled to her feet and made a beeline for the disguised time machine.

But Delgado was in her way, and knew she would be no trouble. That did not result in him pulling his punch, however, as his emotional rage burst out as she approached, and he swung his hand out with great speed, striking her hard in the temple. She fell back to the ground with a sickening thud, out cold.

_That_, more than the earlier commotion between Amy and Missy, brought the observing '90s street crowd out of their shellshocked state, and they, as one, gasped in shock. Despite Amy evidently trying to murder a woman just moments before, lots of the people began striding towards Delgado, the looks of fury on their faces unmistakable.

"This is terrible!" Delgado heard the Doctor cry. "This is all a _mess_! We have to... !"

Suddenly, there was yet another flash of light, and an instant later a dishevelled Missy stood between Delgado and the stalking crowd. Delgado sighed in relief even as Missy fell to her knees and gasped, seemingly for air. He knelt down quickly and pulled her up. "Mother, what happened?!" Delgado then noticed... "Where's Cole?!"

Missy looked at him, blinking rapidly. She then turned to the stunned crowd, and in a quick motion, fired her pistol rapidly at the ground, causing just enough of a distraction for Delgado to drag her back inside their TARDIS.

"They're getting away!" cried Mels. "_No_!"

But it was too late. By the time the people blocking the Doctor and her companions calmed, the red phone box was gone...

TO BE CONTINUED


	28. Chapter 28

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 28

Delgado glared at his Gallifreyan mother as she hunched over the control console. Even in her semi-conscious state, Missy still managed to ward off a baying crowd and, once Delgado dragged her into their TARDIS, set a course out of there. But the young man could tell it nearly took everything out of her: the way Missy hung her head and breathed heavily, it was clear something happened while she and Cole were gone.

But where _was_ Cole? When Missy returned without his youngest sibling, Delgado knew something bad happened. He instantly felt rage: it was all _their_ fault. Mels, the somehow-returned Amy and of course, the interfering Doctor. If they never showed themselves, the Masters-Oswalds' would be happily celebrating this momentous day, the twentieth wedding anniversary of Missy and Clara. Instead, it was momentous for all the wrong reasons.

Delgado felt his whole world unravelling. He _knew_ he should have done more to stop Missy going after the mysterious Mels. While he could not very well drug his Gallifreyan mother the way he did his Human one, he wished he could have prevented her risking everything to "avenge" Clara's condition.

However, that was not the most important thing at the moment: right now, all that mattered was his brother. "Mother," Delgado dared, even as Missy was clearly trying to suck air, "where's Cole?"

At that, Missy's breathing paused, and she stared down at the console, her eyes not meeting his. Delgado's worry turned to panic. The Time Lady at a loss for words was _never_ a good sign.

Hauntingly, Missy raised her head and gulped. "He's... gone."

Now Delgado's own breath caught. "Gone?"

Biting her lip, Missy's eyes began darting erratically, as if trying to comprehend what was happening. "We... we ended up somewhere... somewhere terrible. I tried to save him... I tried to save him... " With that, tears trickled down her cheeks. Oh God. She was _never_ like this. Delgado felt a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"I couldn't... " Missy choked. "I couldn't... couldn't save him... he's gone... my baby boy is gone... "

Delgado shook his head furiously. "No - we can go back! Your vortex manipulator... it'll take us back! We can... " He stopped as Missy slowly raised her wrist so her fused and worn-out device was visible. It was broken beyond repair. Delgado knew, while it kept a record of everywhere their TARDIS went, the TARDIS did not keep a record of everywhere the _manipulator_ went. Meaning...

Cole was gone. His baby brother was lost forever.

Delgado was almost overtaken by the fury inside him. They would all pay for this. _Dearly_.

"Clara... take me to Clara... " whispered Missy. "I need to see her... need to tell her... " Again she went silent, instead closing her eyes in obvious pain.

"Of course, Mother," breathed Delgado. For now he would have to stem his rage, and help his family, the family he defied the laws of time itself to recreate. His parents - and his other siblings - needed him. But soon, _very_ soon, the Doctor and her gang of interfering do-gooders would know what they caused. It was not just Mels now.

They _all_ had to be _ended_...

TO BE CONTINUED


	29. Chapter 29

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

_4\. The actions the Doctor alludes to in this chapter regarding Amy and Clara are what the Twelfth did in the 21st chapter of my story, _Crossroads_._

* * *

PART 29

Ryan let out a sigh of relief when he finally found his objective. The TARDIS really was a maze sometimes. Then again, judging by the sight before him, he wondered if success was what he wanted.

Sitting, in a quiet, darkened room, was the Doctor. But she was not her usually bubbly, energetic self. True, recent events dimmed the Time Lady's bubbliness, but she still remained energetic. Not now, though. She was just staring ahead, shoulders slumped, eyes heavy. She looked like all the life was drained out of her.

Ryan turned to what she was staring at. It was a wall adorned with dozens and dozens of holographic 3D portraits. He noticed the Doctor was focused on three specifically, near the end of the rows. Ryan instantly recognised one of them: though much younger, it was Amy.

"Hey, Ryan." The lad was startled at her words - she had not turned to face him. "Amy send you here to tell me off?"

He frowned as he fully entered the room. "No. We were just wonderin' what happened t'you. Yaz in particular is proper worried. Once we left the 1990s you just left the console room, without sayin' a word. Is everythin' alright?" He instantly groaned. "Sorry, stupid question."

"No such thing as a stupid question, Ryan," the Doctor said quietly, still not facing him. "If we don't ask questions, nothing is ever learnt."

"I guess." Now next to the Time Lady, he took in a better look at the pictures on the wall. He realised who these people where - Team TARDIS was well aware they were not the first to travel with the Doctor. Combined with learning Amy was a previous companion of the Gallifreyan, Ryan deduced these were all people the Doctor spent time with. He also noticed how many were young and beautiful women. No wonder the alien had a soft spot for…

"She's quite right to, of course."

Blinking at the non-sequitur, Ryan frowned. "Y'wot? Who?"

"Amy," replied the Doctor simply. "I deserve to be told off. This is all my fault. All of it."

Cautiously, Ryan sat down next to her. "From what I've gathered, this Missy woman seems to be behind quite abit of it too. After what happened to Amy, I'm pretty sure _they're_ the bad guys." He offered a small smile, but it went unrewarded. Instead, the Doctor just remained silent, continuing to bore a hole through the pictures on the wall. Following her gaze, Ryan tried a different tact. "So… that's Amy, huh?"

The Doctor gave a pained gulp, and Ryan again wanted to take back his words. But she spoke up before he could. "Yeah, and that's Clara." Ryan eyes widened slightly as the Doctor nodded to the picture next to the young Amy's. No wonder the Scot was desperate to get her fiancee back - _both_ were stunning. Perhaps the two most beautiful women Ryan had ever seen.

The Doctor pointed at a third photo, next to Clara's. "And that's Rory, Amy's ex-fiancee. He actually came - and left, actually - before Clara arrived, but I felt I should have Amy and Clara next to eachother. I'm sure Rory wouldn't have minded. Hope not, anyway… " She finally turned to Ryan, and sighed. "Sorry, ramblin' again. It's just… " She fell silent.

"Just what, Doctor?" Ryan pressed gently.

Another sigh. "I forgot about the three of them for awhile. _Literally_ forgot about them. The neural bl… " She paused. "Well, anyway… the TARDIS forgot about them too, and they actually disappeared from the wall. But now they're back." She tapped her knee absently. "Always good to have a full set… " Her tone sounded so empty, like she was _trying_ to make light, and failing miserably.

Ryan bit his lip. "Doctor… what is it?"

Closing her eyes, the Time Lady seemed to realise the futility of putting on a front. When she spoke after another gulp, it was with a raw pain Ryan never heard from her before. "I've messed this up, Ryan. Everything seems to be going wrong. I'm supposed to be this great defender of the universe, but I can't even protect my friends."

Ryan actually scoffed. "You serious?! Doctor, Yaz weren't jokin' when you said you're the most amazin' person we've ever met. And if you're just tryin' to scare us off, forget it. None of us plan on goin' anywhere."

"Amy's right though," choked the Doctor. "I let her down. I let Clara down. I should've been there to keep them together, should've stopped Missy from breaking them up. I should've done _more_."

Ryan wondered what to say. He never saw the Time Lady like this before. Weary. Tired. Emotionally _beaten-down_. Then he realised something. "If I understand correctly, you _were_ there for them, all along. Just the fact that Mels is here proves that it _did_ work out - or at least, it's _supposed_ to. This Delgado punk is the one we should be blamin'. Accordin' to Mels - and you said you believed her, so that's all _I_ need t'know - Delgado's the one who messed everythin' up in the first place. He ain't even supposed to exist."

"Perhaps," the Doctor mumbled.

"Defo," said Ryan confidently. "I ain't gonna pretend to understand everythin' that's goin' on, but I _do_ know that none of this is your fault. Despite what Amy says."

At that, the Time Lady shook her head. "Oh, Ryan… I'm not this paragon of virtue you think I am. I _try_ to be - Gallifrey knows I try - but I've made plenty, plenty of mistakes. Not least of which with Amy and Clara. I tried to fix it, and it backfired royally."

Ryan shook his own head in disbelief. "Look… I know whatever it is you're beatin' yourself up for, you don't wanna say. And that's fine - really. But just answer this: whatever you did, did you think it was the best thing t'do at the time?"

No answer.

_That_ got to Ryan. There was something in the Doctor's eyes, something else he never saw in her before: uncertainty. Whatever she was not telling him, she was _deeply_ conflicted by.

Eventually, she spoke. "I just didn't want my friends to suffer anymore."

Looking down, Ryan nodded. "Can't think of a much better reason than that."

The Doctor chuckled, but there was no mirth in it. "If only that were true." At his look of confusion, she continued. "I don't just deal with aliens of the week or making sure my friends are safe - which I have a terrible track record of, anyway. I've had to deal with stuff much, _much_ bigger than that. I'm talking things on a galactic and even universal scale. Trust me, you have no idea what stuff I've had to fix. And try as I might, sometimes I can't save the universe and the people I care about at the same time." She ran a hand through her hair. "And these cracks are just the latest of a long list of… of timey-wimey problems I've had to deal with. Honestly, they couldn't have come at a worse time. Amy, Mels, Missy _and_ the cracks? Everytime I focus on one of them, the other two get worse." She tutted. "Doesn't help that I don't have the faintest idea what they're about. Mels is convinced they're something to do with Delgado, but right now I have no idea why they're appearing, what they're doing or how to stop them. How can I focus on them when I swore to get Clara back to Amy? Should I have even done that?! The fabric of reality should take precedence, but… " Closing her eyes in pain, her next words were almost inaudible. "… it's just… it's _Amy and Clara_. I can't fail them again."

Ryan let her words sink in. It was not until now he realised just how much their eccentric, lovable alien friend carried on her shoulders. He often suspected her carefree exterior was just that: an exterior. No one could be that happy-go-lucky all the time. And now, sadly, he knew he was right. It broke Ryan's heart to know just how much the Time Lady felt responsible for. He knew whatever words of comfort he could offer would be inadequate, but he still tried. "Well… " he began after a long silence, "… we're all here for you, whatever happens. Me, Graham and definitely Yaz ain't leavin' you." He smiled softly, trying again to bring some levity. "I might not remember that paintin' you insist I got, but I _definitely_ don't remember Team TARDIS botchin' a mission."

The Doctor smiled ruefully… then her eyes widened. Ryan noticed, and frowned as her expression slowly changed from sadness to…

"Painting… " The Time Lady suddenly let out a loud gasp and her jaw dropped. She darted her head to Ryan and shot to her feet so fast _he_ nearly felt whiplash. The Doctor slammed her hands on her shoulders. "Ryan, you're a _genius_!"

The Doctor was then out the room like a blur, leaving a befuddled and baffled Ryan Sinclair…

TO BE CONTINUED


	30. Chapter 30

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

_4\. Yaz's problem here stems from the finale of my story, _Out of Reach_._

* * *

PART 30

"Fam meeting! Fam meeting!"

The Doctor dashed into the console room with Ryan close behind. Quickly they were joined by Yaz, Graham, Amy and Mels. Everyone seemed harried; then again, the TARDIS _was_ blaring out sirens to get everyone's attention. "Doctor, what is it?!" gasped Yaz. "What's wrong?!"

"Nothin's wrong!" replied the Time Lady. "Well, I mean there is, in general, but I think I've finally figured out what the glowin' cracks are and what they're doin'!"

Mels looked confused. "I told you, they're sucking time out of the universe."

The Doctor raised a brow. "Oh, they're doin' much more than that, Mels." With everyone gathered present, the Doctor went into classic exposition mode. "Think - what's the one thing that's happened almost everytime one of them has popped up?"

Everyone looked at her, unsure.

"We first encountered one just after Ryan said he couldn't remember the painting we got on that market planet," explained the Gallifreyan. Then, when I went to see Rory, he had no idea who I was - and it wasn't because of the new body thing. And Amy - you forgot who Rory was _even as we were talking about him_! Guess what was right outside his house as it all went on? A glowing crack!"

"I don't understand… " admitted Graham.

"I still don't myself," the Doctor also admitted. "'Least not yet - not fully. But… " She looked at the elderly Scot. "Amy, you also said you couldn't remember me having a direct line to Churchill. That's why you never went to him when you missed me in 1941."

Team TARDIS shared a look, unaware of the details of Amy's fiery reunion with the Doctor.

For her part, Amy clenched her jaw. "Doctor, if this is just an elaborate way of trying to play innocent again… "

At that, the Time Lady looked saddened, and her confident tone briefly lapsed. "Amy, I promise you, Churchill does - or did, whatever - have a way of contacting me. I might not've got it right away, but he _could've_ got a message to me about you situation. I _swear_." Amy still looked less than convinced, but the Time Lady soldiered on. "_Anyway_, my point is, was there a crack anywhere near you when you came to that conclusion?"

"I wasn't exactly paying attention to my surroundings at the time," snapped the 62-year-old. "I was too busy breaking down at the realisation that my last chance to be with my fiancee was gone forever."

The Doctor gulped, once more stung by the knives stabbed into her hearts at Amy's bitterness.

Before the moment could linger, however, Mels spoke up. "But whatabout the giant anomaly in the 1990s? That one was unreal - not to mention its effects!"

The Time Lady gave one last pained look at Amy, then turned her attention the Scot's misplaced daughter. "Right, that was a monster all right. But think - what was also going on around it?" At everyone's dumbfounded looks, she continued. "Two people who claimed not to know eachother, but… "

"… but also looked like they were married," finished Yaz.

The Doctor gave a chuffed look of approval. "Gold star for Yaz. Yes, I think they were effected by the crack just like Amy, Ryan and Rory were. In their case, they forgot about _eachother_."

"But what about all the craziness that followed?" asked Ryan. "With the crack gettin' super-big and suckin' everyone into it?"

The Doctor bit her lip. "That I'm not sure on yet. Mels, you seem to think they're absorbing time… "

"I've detected chronal energy gathering inside them, yes," the wanderer acknowledged. "Everytime I encountered one, the energy seemed to be greater, even if the cracks themselves weren't. Except for that last one, obviously." She sighed. "It's a shame all my equipment has been destroyed. My trowel's packed in, and being in electric contact with Missy's vortex manipulator completely fried my own. Sorry, Aunty Doctor, but the TARDIS is my only mode of transportation now. You're stuck with me." She gave a slight smile.

The Doctor grinned back. "More than welcome, Mels." She then returned to the matter at hand. "Anyway, I have a sneaky suspicion the cracks are also absorbing mental energy. Think about it: pretty much everytime one's turned up, someone's had a lapse in memory."

"Would that explain why you never asked about me after Delgado gave me a smack?" Amy accused. "I'm fine, by the way."

The Doctor paused again, automatically putting a hand to her own brow. "You're right… I _am_ bein' affected… "

Yaz went closer to her. "Doctor… ?" she asked, concern written all over her face.

"When I came across a crack, I felt a pull on my own mind… " The Time Lady frowned. "Guess it had a delayed reaction." She quickly shook the worry away, however - at least outwardly. "OK, I know this sounds like a contradiction interms, but everyone think - can anyone else remember a moment where they forgot something?"

Everyone glared at her, faces a mixture of confusion, bewilderment and even humour at her question. "How the hell are we meant to answer that?" enquired Graham.

"Not the best phrasin', I know," the Doctor shrugged. "But you get me meanin'."

Graham chuckled. "Well, any memory loss _I_ have can be put down to my age, so I wouldn't worry 'bout me." He suddenly stopped, and turned to see Amy tilting her head to him. "Er, no offence, love… "

Before anyone else could speak on Graham's social fau pax, a voice cut in. "Um… "

The Doctor saw a hand being slowly raised. Her hearts sank. "Oh Yaz… not you, too… "

"Sorry," the policewoman whispered. "But… well, I didn't think much of it at the time, but there was something you lot said shortly after we got back from the market planet. Somethin' about Grace… "

Instantly Ryan and Graham perked up. "Whatabout her?"

Yaz gulped. "Who's Grace?"

The atmosphere in the room instantly dropped, and it was not the TARDIS' doing. Graham's mouth became a thin line. "That's _not_ funny, Yaz."

"I… "

"How could you even _say_ that?" Ryan looked crushed.

"Guys, please," the Doctor interjected, cutting stepgrandad-and-son off. She faced Yaz fully, who looked guilty as anything. "Yaz, it's OK," she assured softly. "Just tell us exactly what you mean."

Taking a gulp, Yaz spoke quietly, almost reluctantly. "I never said anythin' 'cos I figured it was none of my business. But after what you've just been sayin'… " She looked pleadingly at Ryan and Graham. "I'm sorry, but if I should know who she is… I don't."

There was silence for a few agonising moments, before Graham sighed sadly. "It's OK, Yaz. _We're_ sorry for snappin' at you. Given the situation, I guess we shouldn't be surprised. Right, son?"

Ryan eventually nodded. "Yeah, s'pose not. Still… can't believe you'd forget me Nan."

"Grace was… ?" Now Yaz looked devastated. "Oh guys… I'm sorry… " At the sight of the poor girl, Ryan and Graham simply went to her and enveloped her in a three-way hug.

The Doctor struggled to hold back tears, both at the sight of forgiveness and the pain of… "OK… " she said huskily. "Fam meeting over."

TO BE CONTINUED


	31. Chapter 31

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 31

Missy looked over the comatose form of her wife. Clara's breath was even and quiet. To anyone she just looked like she was peacefully sleeping.

But Missy knew better. Her poor poppet was driven to this state by all the stress of recent events. Clara's physiological condition was unstable as it is, what with Missy endowing her with Gallifreyan traits all those years ago. But it was worth the risk: the Time Lady would not lose her Impossible Girl for _anything_, given what she had to do to manipulate events and win her over in the first place. And she certainly was to not going to lose her over something so _Human_ as old age.

That left Clara somewhat vulnerable, however. The medication she occasionally had to take kept her mind from destroying itself at the psychological weight of what Missy did to her very physiology. And it was clear the stress of being kidnapped was too much for the poor girl. Of course, it was always possible Clara was being lax in taking her meds. It would not be the first time: as intelligent and practical as the former teacher was, she was also stubborn and self-reliant. Missy adored her wife, and even enjoyed their infrequent verbal spars, but she always had to remind Clara who was in charge of this marriage. Not in those exact words, obviously, but Missy was the queen of manipulation…

Still, she had enough of subtlety now. One failed attack on Mels was enough for the Mistress' ego: next time, the interloper _would_ die. Not only for causing Clara's collapse, but also filling her head with such nonsense as being her daughter. Only _Missy_ could give Clara children, and the Time Lady would be damned if Clara even _considered_ leaving her. Especially for her ex.

Missy audibly growled at the thought of the accursed Amy. She should have killed the Scot when she had the chance; but the Time Lady was always one for irony, and just found the idea of stranding Clara's ex-fiancee in the past, with no way to get back, too delicious to turn down. However, that was all coming back to bite her behind now: she _never_ thought Amy would find a way out of Earth's past - indeed, Missy assumed she soon die in an air raid of wartime London, or something - but, again, she underestimated her "best friend". Trust the Doctor to somehow find Amy and bring her back. Now Missy had two goals in this mission: end Mels for what she did to Clara, and end Amy for what she _might_ do to Clara - ie, take her away.

Missy would not let that happen. Under _any_ circumstances.

Despite her rage, however, Missy could not help but be amused at another aspect of the current situation - the Doctor _her_self. By Rassilon, Missy found the sight of her old enemy in her new form startling, intriguing and yes, even exhilarating. Under different circumstances, Missy might even consider "befriending" the Doctor again. She certainly was a looker. Perhaps, after killing Mels and Amy, Missy could tease her frenemy about her new body and ask wholly inappropriate questions. Then again, the Doctor might not _exactly_ be in the right mood if Missy did so immediately, with Mels and Amy's bodies still warm. Oh well.

Missy was brought out of her musings by the sound of sniffles behind her. She immediately knew it was Delgado: none of her and Clara's other children would dare interrupt their mothers… even if one of them was on a medbed.

Oh right. The children. _Cole_. Missy almost forgot. Time to put on the act again.

"Mother," came Delgado's choked voice. Missy could tell he had been crying. "Is Mum awake yet?"

Still looking at Clara, Missy altered her tone to match her eldest's. "No, Delgado… " she sobbed. "She's still asleep. I… I couldn't tell her about Cole… "

Behind her, Delgado closed his eyes in pain. "There… there must be _something_ we can do… "

"I think there is… " breathed Missy. "We can… can make Mels tell us where she sent Cole and I… " - she told Delgado the young woman teleported them away intentionally, when even Missy knew it was a freak accident - "… then we can go and get… get your brother back… " She had no intention of doing any such thing: she just wanted an excuse incase Delgado asked why they were going after Mels and the Doctor again.

"But Mother… can't you fix your manipulator… ?"

Time to lay it on thick. "Don't you think I've _tried_?!" She shot to her feet, spun around and glared at him, tears streaming down her face. "Do you think I've just been sitting here stroking your mother's brow?!" Ironic, as that _was_ all she had done since getting back. "My youngest child is _GONE_! Taken from me! I watched him drift in the void of space and I could do _nothing about it!_ My manipulator malfunctioned and brought me back before I could save him!" Lies upon lies upon… "Oh God… my dear Cole… my poor baby… " With that, she "broke down", crying into her hands. She hated showing such weakness, even feigned, but it was necessary.

"Mother… " Delgado rushed upto her.

However, Missy stopped him with an outstretched arm. "No… I… I'm alright." She choked back crocodile tears as she "composed herself". She then ran a hand through her blonde hair and cleared her throat. "Just… give me a moment longer, and I'll join you in the control room."

He nodded reluctantly, then spoke with just as much reticence. "Mother… whatabout Michelle, Gomez and Jenna? They still don't know about any of this." It was just a freak occurrence Cole left their playing when he saw Missy being attacked on the viewscreen. "We have to tell them _something_."

Missy barely held in a disgruntled groan. Bloody kids - if they weren't so important to keeping Clara by her side… "You're right. I'll talk to them first. You go to the control room and wait for me."

"Do you want me to… ?"

"No, no, I'll be fine," said Missy. "Better they hear it from me. Now… run along. I'll be with you shortly."

Delgado looked at her warily, then nodded and left.

Once alone again, Missy rolled her eyes and quickly wiped her cheeks dry. She turned back to her comatose wife. Even unconscious, she was the most beautiful creature in all time and space. Missy sighed. "I'm almost glad you're not awake right now, my angel. You wouldn't want to see what I'm about to do." With that, she left the sickbay and headed to the children's playroom…

TO BE CONTINUED


	32. Chapter 32

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 32

Amy sat in her old room on the TARDIS, the one she spent countless days and nights in with her soulmate. She wondered if this was truly their old bedroom, or just a facsimile recreated by the time machine; regardless, it did not matter. Everything was perfect. The bookcase. The furniture. Decor. Bedside lights. And of course, the bed itself, with its luxurious sheets and immaculate stitching. Only the best. It was all exactly as Amy remembered.

Indeed. Despite the Doctor's assertions of the "memory wiping", nothing could ever erase Amy Pond's memory of _anything_ connected with Clara Oswald.

Was it true? Where these strange glowing cracks absorbing mental energy, stealing memories from people throughout time? Or was the Doctor just trying to cover herself for never coming to Amy's rescue? Was she lying about Churchill having a "direct line" to her?

No. Amy simply could not believe it. Despite her decades alone, stewing resentment towards the Time Lord - now Lady - she simply could not believe for a _second_ the Doctor would ever do that. Yes, he often asked Clara and she if he was "a good man", and yes, he did things bordering on cruel. But he was never _outright_ cruel… despite her words to Yaz. That was just anger talking. Faced with someone who clearly could not and would not hear a bad word against the Doctor - it enflamed Amy's bitterness. But deep down, she knew the Doctor was speaking truthfully. He - she - might have her moments, but the Gallifreyan was never cowardly.

However, the news about Churchill _did_ mean something just as bitter to swallow:

It meant Amy spent 36 years in the past for nothing.

All that time lost… needlessly.

Closing her eyes in restrained agony, Amy did not hear the first knock on the door. Only when it was accompanied by a "Can I come in?" did she acknowledge it.

"It's open, Doctor," she said hoarsely. The door slid silently, and the Time Lady was standing there.

"How're you feeling?" she asked softly.

The 62-year-old shrugged. "As well as can be expected, given that I've been lamped on the head, and apparently spent years having my brain sucked dry."

"Actually, I don't think it's worked quite like that," said the Doctor as she stepped fully into the room. "I think these cracks are comin' and goin' throughout time and space, probably only takin' small amounts of energy before recedin' on their own. Like with that big one in '90s England… though that was on a bigger scale, obviously. But evenso, it collapsed on its own, albeit after it did a heck of alot of dama… " She stopped, then scrunched her face. "I'm ramblin' again, aren't I? I tend t'do that alot now. Graham and Ryan are always rollin' their eyes, though Yaz seems not to mind too much. Maybe… "

"You _always_ rambled, Doctor," Amy interrupted. "But now, I'm not in the mood. Haven't been for a long time."

At that, the Doctor's face fell. "Amy, I can't say 'sorry' enough. I know nothin' I can say or do, other than reuniting you with Clara, will make amends. Which is why I _will_ get her back to you. I promise."

Just two days ago, Amy might have told the Gallifreyan to shove her promise up her arse. But now… ? "Thanks," she said simply, though genuinely.

There was silence for a few beats, before the Doctor nodded at something on the bedside table. "Did the picture help?"

Amy turned at the photo the Time Lady gave her a couple of hours ago, once her head stopped throbbing from Delgado's attack. The image was of a young man, fair-haired and in a checkered shirt and puffer waistcoat. Sadly, it meant nothing to Amy: she had no idea who this "Rory" was. "No," she sighed. "Doesn't ring any bells."

The Doctor's jaw clenched. "I'm gonna find out what's behind these cracks, and I'm gonna put a stop to them. What happened in that town centre can't happen again."

"What _did_ happen?" asked Amy. "It was crazy… "

"I don't know, but Mels seems sure that Delgado is responsible." The Doctor bit her lip. "We're tracking Missy's TARDIS again, and this time, they won't get away." She then shook her head. "Anyway, whatabout you? Do you need anything? Are you hungry? The kitchen is better than ever." She offered a smile, desperate as it was.

Amy looked up at her as a thought entered her head. "Actually, there is something I've been meaning to ask you." Perhaps not the best time, but there was nothing else to do while the TARDIS followed the artron trail. Besides, Amy needed the distraction.

The Doctor tilted her head. "Oh?"

"Are you going to let Yaz down easy?"

The Time Lady blinked. "Wh… what… ?"

Amy glared at her, her own voice unwavering. "Or are you going to do what you usually do, and either hope for someone else to come along who gets her attention, or for her to lose patience and walk out?"

The Doctor's mouth began flapping. "I… I… what do you mean?"

Just like that, Amy's patience with the alien was again gone. "Don't play dumb with me, Doctor. You never could. We all might be forgetting stuff left, right and centre, but don't try telling me that you've forgotten that me and Clara never let you get away with shit."

"Amy, I… " The Doctor tried laughing it off, but it was weak as anything. "I really don't… that is, I mean… I don't have any idea what you're talkin' about".

At that, Amy shook her head. "You know damn well what I'm talking about. Yaz - she's crazy about you."

The Doctor appeared at a loss for words - possibly the rarest sight in all time and space. "No… " she eventually choked, "… no she isn't."

Amy actually chuckled with incredulity. "She worships the ground you walk on. I've been back _two days_ and I can see it - it's not like she hides it. Or if she does, she's doing a terrible job." The Scot began listing things she noticed during her brief time back in the TARDIS. "She follows you around like a pu… like a pet. She hangs on your every word. She blushes everytime you look at her. _She_ looks at _you_ with the biggest heart eyes I've seen. And she leaps to your defence like her life depends on it. She's literally called you '_perfect_', and she genuinely thinks you are. She's utterly devoted to you, in a way that goes beyond 'just good friends'." Amy clenched her jaw. "And you _know it_."

After all that, the Doctor just stared at her wide-eyed, trying to form a sentence.

Amy kept her accusatory gaze.

Eventually, the Doctor closed her eyes and gulped deeply. Looking down, all the energy seemed to abandon her. When she spoke, it was barely a whisper. "I do."

Amy again shook her head, though whether in disgust, pity or something else, she was unsure.

"I always know," the Time Lady breathed. "Everytime."

The Scot nodded in understanding. Angry as she was with the Doctor, at the decades spent abandoned, but when all was said and done, this was still her Raggedy Ma… Woman. "She was right when she said to me that she's not the first. Both me and Clara when we first met you… "

"I never plan on it, Amy," the Time Lady insisted. "I really don't. It's just… it keeps happening. But I thought this time, in this body, it would be different. Or at least, I thought maybe it would be Ryan… "

Now Amy let out a guffaw. "You fucking serious? You're using your new body as an excuse? No, don't play that card, Doctor. Have the cracks made you forget about same-sex couples, and that you had one _onboard_? Me and Clara weren't exactly discreet!"

"No," said the Gallifreyan. A modicum of her legendary self-confidence returned. "And I also don't remember any complainin' from you when '_someone else came along_'," referring to when Clara joined them and Amy's crush on the Doctor transferred to true love with the schoolteacher.

"Oh, no no no, you are not turning this back on me." Amy pointed at her. "This is about _you_, and playing with young women's affections, which you - intentionally or not - always do. And even now I can tell that Yaz has it worse than me or Clara ever did. She's bonafide in love with you."

"No, don't say that, Amy," said the Doctor, almost desperately. "It'll only lead to pain."

"Then let her go," the 62-year-old said softly. "Prolonging it will only make it harder on her." She then chuckled again, ironically. "Unless you're in love with her, too." However, when Amy looked back at the Time Lady, she was unnerved.

All the colour was drained from the Doctor's face, as she looked at Amy in complete fear. Another gulp.

Amy's brow furrowed in concern, and she looked deep into her old friend's new eyes. "Do… ?"

Suddenly, there was a loud explosion noise and the entire room shook, sending the two women to the floor. The lighting went red, and sirens filled the air.

"Wh… _what happened_?" Yelled Amy over the din, as she struggled to her feet.

The Doctor dashed up and headed for the exit. "_We're under attack_!"

TO BE CONTINUED


	33. Chapter 33

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 33

"Got them!"

Missy could not help the evil chuckle escaping her lips as she dashed around the control console, activating volley after volley at the enemy TARDIS. The blue police box ahead of them was shaking violently from the attack. All TARDIS' might have incredible shielding, but none were truly indestructible. Especially from what Missy's was packing.

"Mother, what if they fire back?" screamed Delgado over the din of their own TARDIS' red alert klaxons.

"There's no worry there," replied Missy. "The poor, weak-kneed Doctor would never install weaponry on his own TARDIS. He… _she_ never had the hearts for it." She smirked. "Gonna have to get used to that synonym. Well, until I knock them out of the time vortex so hard she has to regenerate." With that, Missy resumed firing everything her TARDIS had at the blue box.

Delgado saw through the monitor, the enemy time machine spiralling through the vortex. The Masters-Oswalds were right behind them, not letting up for a moment. Missy would blow them out of the "sky", even if she had to deplete her entire weapon systems to do so. They would not get away with causing Clara's collapse.

"Look!" Yelled Delgado. "They're dematerialising!"

Missy watched as the police box began fading out of the time vortex. "That means they're _re_materialising somewhere. Quick, get a lock on their coordinates - we're not losing them!" Delgado did as ordered, inspecting the console for the destination the Doctor's TARDIS was heading for. "Then we'll follow them and finish them off. I'm not letting them go for anything. That little Mels girl will pay for what she did to my Clara, and woe betide the Doctor if she gets in my way." Over the next few minutes, both mother and son worked feverishly to hone in on the other TARDIS' location, before Missy gave a triumphant nod. "Time and place found… landing now." With that, she moved over to a nondescript wall panel and pressed a hidden button. The panel then slid aside, revealing a stunning variety of alien firearms.

Delgado's eyes widened. "You… have a… ?"

"Yes, I have a weapons cupboard in the control room," said Missy dismissively. She picked two rifles than closed the panel up. "Just for emergencies, of course. Don't tell Clara." She tossed her eldest son the smaller of the two guns. Barely catching it, Delgado looked stunned. Under normal circumstances, Missy might take not of it: of all her and Clara's annoying brats, Delgado was easily the most capable and self-assured. For him be at all flummoxed was something.

But these were not normal circumstances. Missy was about to again break the one rule she adhered to since making Clara hers twenty years ago. She was about to knowingly confront the Doctor, the one person who could take her Impossible Girl away. Not that the Mistress would ever let that happen: she would destroy entire galaxies just to keep Clara by her side. So as much as it might pain her to do so, Missy would not hesitate to kill her "best friend" if it came to it.

Mels and Amy would _definitely_ get it, however.

As the TARDIS doors opened and Missy strode to the exit - already checking her ammo - Delgado looked nervous. "Mother, what about Michelle, Gomez and Jenna?"

"I told you, they're fine," said Missy.

"But… "

"They're _fine_!" shrieked the Time Lady, and that shut her son up. "Discussion" over, Missy continued out the TARDIS. Again, under different circumstances, she might revel in the sight once they exited:

The blue police box was upright, but barely. Scorch marks covered its shell, and small flames littered the area; the time machine probably landed in midair and slammed into the ground, with residual sparks caused by Missy's weapons catching in the grass beneath their feet.

But again, these were not normal circumstances. All Missy cared about waiting for the police doors to open and her old frenemy to emerge. Though she and Delgado were packing some serious - and obviously illegal in all civilised galaxies - heat, these rifles had no chance blowing the doors off a TARDIS, even a weakened one. But Missy knew the Doctor would come out soon enough.

Sure enough, after just a few moments, the door creaked open - barley still on its hinges, and a ruffled blonde-haired head poked out. The Doctor clenched her jaw at the sight.

"Hello, old friend," said Missy coldly, rifle pointed right at her rival's skull. "Miss me?"

TO BE CONTINUED


	34. Chapter 34

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 34

The Doctor scowled at the person infront of her. Or rather, the person behind the _rifle_ infront of her. "Well?" said the Mistress. "Any final words?"

Taking a moment to find the appropriate retort, the Doctor thought back to the past few minutes. Her conversation with Amy _certainly_ did not go the way she planned, but that had to be put on the backburner for the moment… perhaps thankfully.

Instead, the immediate concern was the furious assault Missy's TARDIS inflicted on the Doctor's own. To be brutally honest - about_ this_ anyway - the Doctor did not know it was capable to weaponise a TARDIS that much. Sure, the Gallifreyan time machines were all-but-infinite in space and possibilities, but still. Or maybe it was just because the Doctor, even during the Time War, never installed any directly offensive systems into the old girl. She should have known not everyone would be as pacifistic as her - least of all her oldest enemy.

She was _not_ surprised at the savagery of the attack, however. Once the Doctor realised what was happening, she struggled to regain control of her time machine. Unfortunately, confrontation within the very time vortex was almost unheard of: to even consider it was insane. But then, this _was_ Missy; indeed, even as the Doctor tried shaking the rival TARDIS off, she knew the attack would not stop. If everything Mels claimed was true - and the Doctor knew it was - she was the key to unravelling all of Delgado's plans. And Delgado must have either come clean about his origins or in some other way convinced his mother - ugh, Missy as a mother, _ugh_! - to let the police box have it with all barrels. However, as she know took in the scene before her, the Doctor noticed how Missy was very much leading this: while the former Master had the Doctor dead to rights, Delgado was hanging back, his own rifle lowered. Even if Missy _did_ know Delgado's timeline meddling, she was still clearly in charge.

"Well?" sneered Missy, her rifle still pointed directly at the Doctor's head.

"Well what?" The Doctor responded, looking into her frenemy's eyes. "We all know you won't shoot."

"And what, my dear, makes you think that?"

"How many times have you had an opportunity to kill me?" the Doctor mused. "But you don't do it. You can't bring yourself to."

The Mistress chuckled, and that _did_ unnerve the Doctor. "I've changed since we last played our game, Doctor. We both have… clearly." She let that hang in the air for a beat. "I have a wife now. A wife I'll protect by any means necessary."

"Don't… say that… _ever_… !" came a weak yet angered voice from behind. The Doctor, Missy and Delgado saw a very dishevelled Amy, along with Mels and Team TARDIS, stagger out the blue box. The Doctor mentally breathed a huge sigh of relief. The attack was so sudden, so chaotic, everyone within the TARDIS was thrown for a loop. She did not have the time to check if they were alright, and she could not do it immediately upon landing. She knew she had to deal with what was outside, _and_ what to expect - and though the rifles were a surprise, she would not allow her friends to face a more-unhinged-than-usual Missy.

But obviously, she should have known her urgings would not stop them. They were as devoted to her as she was eager to protect them. She truly did not deserve such loyalty. Especially from…

"Shut up, you old hag," snapped Missy to Amy. "You'll get your… "

That sentence went unfinished as Delgado suddenly lifted his rifle and shot directly at the Doctor's friends. More specifically, _Mels_. Fortunately, the TARDIS' shield bubble held up just enough to protect them, and _long_ enough for Missy to stop her triggerhappy son.

"Delgado, stop!" she shrieked. "_I_ decide when and how they die! And those two," - meaning Amy and Mels, "deserve particularly… _creative_ ends."

"No," insisted Delgado.

At that, Missy's eyes widened, and she appeared genuinely surprised. Still, at least her rifle was now a little further away from the Doctor's head. Not much, but a little. "I beg your pardon?"

"I said _no_." Delgado kept his weapon trained on Mels. "They all have to die. They're too much of a threat."

"What the hell's gotten into you?" Missy's expression was a mixture of anger at being disobeyed, and almost… _pride_.

Fury brew inside the Doctor. "If you hurt _any_ of them anymore, I'll… "

Another sentence went unfinished, only this time it was by something far, far worse.

Quick as lightning, a giant glowing crack, much bigger than the one in '90s England, appeared. It instantly lit up like a beacon, it's light almost blinding. Tendrils of energy snaked out in all directions, setting alight the greenery around them. It was so strong, _both_ TARDIS' shielding had trouble deflecting the golden coils.

The shock also created distance between the Doctor and Missy, and the former immediately rushed to her friends, trying to hustle them back to the blue box. "_Inside_, _quick_!" She screamed over the crackling and shrieking of the anomaly. "_Get back insi_… !"

But some of the energy coils were longer than others, surging out erratically in a wider area. One snaked around and made contact with the Doctor, Mels and Delgado, while another struck Yaz and Missy. In more flashes of lightning-like energy, all five disappeared, leaving Graham, Ryan and Amy alone with two damaged TARDIS'…

TO BE CONTINUED


	35. Chapter 35

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 35

"_AMY_!"

Clara shot up in bed like lightning, eyes wide. Her body was shaking, and her breaths were rapid. She looked around erratically, trying to comprehend what was happening. Where was she? What was happening?

Slowly, her breathing slowed, though her chest continued heaving. She closed her eyes and took a deep gulp of air, and she attempted to calm herself. Think. Think back to the last thing she remembered…

She was on her way to see her children, to assure them she was alright after her kidnapping. Frankly, Clara did not even know if _they_ knew she was taken, but regardless, she wanted to see them. But then something happened, something stopped her - a sting in her arm, then… blackness.

After that, Clara remembered nothing but dreams, images… _visions_. Visions probably planted by the girl, Mels. Visions of Amy. Of all three of them together… no, four. A second child. Another girl.

With red, curly hair…

_No_! Why was she being tortured like this?! Amy could not be her wife, they could not have two daughters - Clara could never _allow_ herself to believe it! Not after everything that happened! She was with _Missy_! Not _Amy_! They could _never_... not _now_...

_Enough_. Just _stop it_.

After shaking her head in an impossible attempt to shake the images, the Impossible Girl looked back up and finally took in her surroundings. She was in the family sickbay. But why? Had she collapsed? She was up-to-date on her medication. Sure, recent events sent her mind for a spin - to put it mildly - but not enough for her to pass out, surely. Was it a side-effect of Mels' telepathy? Or could it simply be a delayed reaction to all the stress? If that was the case, the long rest she took upon her rescue by her wife were for nothing.

Missy. Where was she? On the occasions Clara ended up in sickbay, usually her own fault after skipping out on her meds, the formerly-evil Time Lady was like a hawk, keeping constant vigil on her "poppet". So where was she now? Clara was not being an egotist, but it was unheard of for Missy to leave her alone in sickbay. Something must have happened.

As quick as she dared, Clara moved the sheets aside and swung to the side of the bed. Fortunately, she clearly had not been unconscious for long, as her legs were not too weak. She pushed herself off the bed entirely… but stopped as she comprehended what was around her.

She was not alone in sickbay. Occupying three other beds… were three of her and Missy's children.

Choking, Clara strode over to them. "Michelle? Gomez?! Jenna!"" No response from any of them. They were all comatose, completely unmoving, save for the slow rise from their chests.

Clara felt her eyes well up. What was going on? What _happened_? Where was Missy? Delgado? _Cole_?

Over the next few moments, she called out to the three sleeping children again, trying to rouse them. Gentle nudging gave way to desperate shaking. No reaction. "Please! _Wake up_!" Nothing.

Then, as if that was not bad enough, Clara saw marks on the arms of all three. Needle marks. Almost of their own volition, Clara's eyes moved to her own arm… and saw the same bruising.

Something… some_one_… took out Clara and three of her children. But how?! Why did Missy not save them?!

She had to find her wife. Only _she_ would know what was going on. And the wellbeing of Delgado and Cole.

After kissing each of her babies' foreheads, Clara dashed out the sickbay as fast as she could…

TO BE CONTINUED


	36. Chapter 36

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 36

Delgado groggily opened his eyes as he heard a thumping in his head. For a split second he thought he gained his Gallifreyan mother's accursed drumbeats - something else his parents had no knowledge of _his_ knowledge of - but quickly remembered what happened. Some strange spacial anomaly suddenly appeared between Missy and he, and the Doctor and her companions. Huge and glowing, it was like a crack, a tear in the fabric of reality.

Whatever it was, its tendrils struck Delgado, and sent him away from his family's TARDIS.

Slowly, he raised his head and took in his surroundings. He was still outside, grass beneath him, but the nearby woodside was further away. He could not see either his or the Doctor's TARDIS anywhere, yet instinctively knew he was on the same planet. Chances were, the energy tendril literally picked him up in a flash of lightning, and deposited him in another part of the greenery. And he was not alone.

Delgado's senses fully calibrated as he saw a blonde-haired women with him. An all-but stranger to him personally, yet the mortal enemy of his Time Lady mother: the Doctor was lying several yards away, unconscious. Looked like the pseudo-lightning picked her up too, and she landed hard.

Good. Deciding to take his chance, Delgado got to his feet and crinked his neck. His rifle was gone - no doubt lost in the commotion - but he still had his hands. He staggered to the unmoving woman and, once close enough, formed fists. He would not make the mistake his mother did, and waste time with words. The Doctor had to die - and if she regenerated, Delgado would just keep pummelling until all her lives were…

"_Get away from her_!"

Delgado paused at the voice, then cautiously turned around. He should have known. Behind him and coming up slowly, was Mels, pointing _his_ rifle right at him. At least he knew where it was now.

"Hands up and step away… " Mels ordered, weapon primed.

He narrowed his eyes. "You're Mels, aren't you?" he sneered. "You come from… before."

"From before you changed time, yeah," Mels seethed, coming ever closer. "And you're going to tell us how to undo it."

"Why in Rassilon's name would I do that?" Delgado fired daggers from his eyes. "You stole my mother on my parents' anniversary. Filled her head with… "

"I showed her the _truth_! And you _know it_!" Mels' eyes were watering.

Delgado tilted his head. "So you _are_ from the old timeline. Before I fixed things… made things the way they're _supposed_ to be."

"Your reality was already deleted during the Time War," Mels said. "Your family shouldn't exist - _you_ shouldn't exist! How'd you do it? How'd you escape the time lock?!"

Delgado paused, then simply shrugged. "I honestly don't know. But the fact that I did, proved to me that my cause was just. By sheer force of will I made it back, when countless trillions didn't. And only I had the will to do what needed to be done."

"Are you fucking serious?" Mels chuckled. "You're gonna try and pretend you were doing some righteous cause? You're just a little baby crying for the family that never was!"

"And you're _not_?" Delgado shook his head. "I saw the universe with _your_ parents together… my mother with that worthless, insignificant cow, the one who spent years crying over a 'raggedy man'. Amy didn't deserve Clara Oswald. Only the Mistress does."

Mels primed the rifle - beforehand, it was just pointed at him for intimidation. "Say one more word about my mum and I'll kill you right now."

Now Delgado chuckled. "You won't. You need me - not that I'll help you. I worked too hard for you to undo it all."

"You twisted reality so… "

"I did what I had to to _get my FAMILY BACK_!" screamed Delgado. "Just as _you're_ trying to do! The only difference is, _I_ succeeded, while you're just going to die. You're an anomaly now, _Mels_… " - he spoke her name sarcastically - "_You're_ the one who doesn't belong. _You're_ the relic from a deleted timeline. And my family… my family will be together forever. There's nothing you or the sadsack Doctor or anyone else can do to change that, and there's nothing _I_ won't do to make sure my work isn't undone." He glared at her with fury. "I won't lose my family again - even if the whole universe crashes and burns."

Behind Delgado, startled awake by his shout, the Doctor's eyes fluttered open…

"But that's what _will_ happen," said Mels, tears now streaming. Clearly, his rantings got to her. "I've seen the future! The universe unravelling! Tearing itself apart! Whole galaxies dying! The end of everything!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," said Delgado.

"Maybe not, but you're meddling causes it," Mels explained. "Without my sister being born, they'll be no one to stop it. And the cracks in time are making it worse. What are they - how'd you create them?!"

Now Delgado was proper confused. "What _are_ you babbling about? What cracks?"

"We _just_ saw one! It was pretty bloody hard to _miss_!"

He frowned. "Oh, so _you_ know what that was? Hm, sounds like you know more about them me. So I reckon they're your problem, not mine."

"They're _everyone's_ problem!" cried Mels.

"No, _your_ problem is what's going to happen to you once you give up pretending with my rifle," said Delgado. "Like I said, you won't shoot. I, however… " - he suddenly pulled a small pistol from his back pocket and pointed it at her - "… was taught by my mother to always have a backup weapon."

TO BE CONTINUED


	37. Chapter 37

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 37

The Doctor slowly raised her head, and took an inhale at what she saw.

"… was taught by my mother to always have a backup weapon."

Perhaps it was the sight of the person they had been tracking for so long, the mysterious cause of seemingly everything going on. Perhaps it was the sight of her newest friend in danger. Or perhaps it was simply the use of the word _weapon_, but instantly the Doctor's senses cleared and all the pain in her body upon landing on the grassy ground evaporated - replaced with an uncontrollable need to protect and stem violence. With a mighty push up, she shot to her feet and dove at Delgado, whose back was to her. "_No_!" she screamed as she leapt onto his back, hand reaching out not to wrestle him to the ground or even incapacitate him with Venusian aikido, but to grab his pistol and save Mels.

"_What the hell_?!" Delgado scrambled to get the Time Lady off him, while Mels waved the rifle in her hands around, no doubt wondering to shoot or not - and if so, to not hit the Doctor.

"Gimme that!" the Doctor huffed, refusing to be shaken off. "There'll be no shooting while I'm… !" She did not finish however, as Delgado bent down and sent the Doctor up and over. "Whoaaa!" The world momentarily went upside down, before she hit the ground hard once again. All the air left her body as she made impact.

She refused to let go, however, still keeping hold of Delgado's arm. She made a go for the gun again, but in the heat of the moment, with emotions at fever pitch… everything went crazy once more. Both the Doctor and Delgado's eyes bulged as…

_The Doctor found herself on a deserted street, dark and cold. The cobbled ground was damp from recent rain, and in the distance was a building. Looked almost like…_

_The Doctor's eyes widened as she realised what was happening. Not only was this her third touch-telepathy experience in two days, not only was she now actually part of it in astral form, but she was seeing…_

_She audibly gulped as she approached the building. Her hearts fluttered as she read the plaque by the entrance gates._

_Coal Hill Secondary Modern School._

_Her breath caught. What was she doing here? Who's memory was this? Hers? Perhaps when she was the grumpy Scot investigating the disappearing pupils? No - the surrounding area was wrong. Too… oldfashioned_

_Then the Doctor remembered what she was doing before she wound up here. Which meant, this vision was from the mind of…_

_Delgado._

_Before the Doctor could process that, she heard voices coming up behind her. Rather loud and somewhat-frustrated voices, by the sound of them. She panicked, looking for somewhere to hide, but there was nowhere. And that was when she saw something which shook her to her core._

_"Missy… could you not have brought us to a better time?"_

_The Doctor felt a tear trickle down as her face as Clara Oswald, as young and beautiful as he last saw her, walked out of the darkness towards the school. She was dressed in a heavy coat and scarf, and again the Doctor looked like a deer in the headlights. However, when Clara paid her no heed, the Time Lady remembered her situation: she was in a telepathic memory, one not belonging to her, which meant she was not part of it. Clara nor anyone else would see her._

_It was then the Doctor noticed why her former companion's arms were huddled close to her chest, and it was not for warmth. There, almost buried in warm clothing itself, was a baby. Perhaps not even a toddler, though the Doctor never could tell with Human infants. Her eyes lingered on Clara, as hers simply looked up past her, unable to sense the Time Lady at all. What was she doing here?_

_"That's gratitude for you," came a sharp, cutting voice, as another figure once more emerged from the shadows. Again the Doctor's hearts skipped beats. It was Missy - how she used to be. Dark-haired, hard-faced and statuesque in purple Victorian dress. She was holding her old sonic umbrella, and wearing her classic boater cap. Like Clara, she was unaware of the Doctor's presence. But then, the Doctor was not really ever there, was she? "I agree to take you to your old workplace, for old time's sake, eventhough you never have to work another day in your life. Don't for a second think you're staying here, poppet."_

_Clara rolled her eyes. "I don't think I'd be much good right now, do you? Look." She nodded to the closed-for-the-night-building. "Not only do you bring us here in the middle of the night, when it's just rained clearly, but you bring us here a good fifty years too early."_

_"56, to be exact," said Missy nonchalantly._

_A gasp, though it obviously went unheard. 56? That means this was just a few years before the Doctor was first here… with Susan…_

_"Why would you bring us here _now_?" asked Clara. "All I wanted was to see my old job one last time… "_

_At that, Missy's face softened, something the Doctor felt disgust at. "I'm sorry, my angel. Our TARDIS is infinitely better than… _his_… " - the disgust was momentarily redirected - "… but even it has trouble sometimes. I tried to bring us back to 2015, really I did. I'm sorry." She looked apologetic, something the Doctor was not buying for a second._

_Sadly, Clara seemed to. Her own face fell to guilt, and she sighed. "No, it's… it's alright. I suppose this is just… a sign. A sign that I really have nothing left here."_

_"My darling Clara, always so intelligent," cooed Missy. The Doctor clenched her jaw at the outright _smug_ expression the Mistress had behind the poor Impossible Girl's back. "Now come along dear - this is no place for a new mother and her baby." She paused. "_Our_ baby. Sorry, I still find it hard to believe that I'm a mother myself now."_

_The bile from the Doctor's throat threatened to overflow._

_"OK, but… can you just give me a moment?" Clara looked longingly at Missy, and the Doctor something she was very familiar with - the Clara Oswald Puppy Dog Eyes. "To say goodbye."_

_To the Doctor's shock and amusement, they seemed to have as much sway on the infamous Mistress as the rest of the universe. "You Humans and your sentiments," she humphed. "Fine. But don't be long - I'm not losing my new wife a month into our marriage."_

New_… ?! That was it: the Doctor was sure she was going to vomit._

_"Missy, I'll be fine. I'll just take one last look, and then we can go."_

_Missy nodded. "Very well." She then leaned close, and the two shared a kiss. The Doctor closed her eyes and bit her lip, almost broken to see how quickly and deeply Missy twisted and manipulated the poor girl. With that, Missy disappeared back into the darkness._

_Clara looked back up at the school. "I'm sorry, Delgado," she sighed. "I suppose you'll never know where your birth mum worked. Maybe someday I can bring you back here, to the proper time. Though if your mother is off by a few counties… we might run the risk of running into… " Her face instantly fell, and the Doctor's hearts nearly broke. She knew what - or rather _who_ \- Clara was thinking of._

_"_I will fix this_, _Clara,_" the Doctor said, even though she knew her words would go unanswered. "_I promise you and Amy will_… "_

_"You won't have to worry about that ever again," came another voice, this time from within the school gates._

_The Doctor spun around, and choked as she saw Delgado behind the gates, as if inside a prison cell. He was not referencing the Time Lady's, as he was just as much a part of this vision as Clara and Missy. The Doctor was the visitor here._

_Clara's eyes bulged. "_MI_… !" she began, but when Delgado raised a hand, she stopped suddenly._

_Oh no. The Doctor knew hypnotism when she saw it. She rushed forward, trying to shove Clara out the way… but she just passed right through her. Instead, the former teacher - still with the infant in her arms - simply stared ahead, as Delgado slowly beckoned her closer._

_No! What was Delgado unto?!_

_When she was right up at the gates, Delgado motioned for Clara to stop. He then reached his arm through the gates and slowly, delicately pushed back the small hood, revealing his own baby head, fast asleep in his mum's arms. "After escaping the time lock," he said, "I only have enough energy left to do this. I've already ensured my own birth… and now I'll ensure it'll always happen." With that, he placed his palm on his own past self's forehead._

_The Doctor stared wide-eyed._

_Slowly, energy flowed out from Delgado, almost like regenerative energy, onto and around the babe. Eyes closed tight in exertion, Delgado grimaced and grit his teeth. "Everything I am, I'm giving to you… so you'll know… in time… what happened… what I lost… and what you… have… this way… our family will… never die again… " Finally, with one last burst of power, the baby Delgado was fully engulfed in energy, and just at the end, he perked up, as if his infant mind somehow knew what was happening…_

_And then the Doctor watched in amazement, as the older Delgado literally faded away into nothing._

_Except… that was _not_ the end. The Doctor's shock only intensified as a sudden shock of electricity shot from the ground. A shock which, appropriately enough, seemed to shock Clara out of her haze. She blinked several times, and looked confused. "Wh… wha… ?" She looked down at tiny Delgado, who was already fast asleep again, all evidence of what transpired gone._

_The Doctor stood by as Clara seemed to shake her unease away. "Well… come on, my darling. Time to… go home." She then turned and walked back into the darkness, no doubt back to Missy's TARDIS - passing right through the Doctor again in the process._

_But the Doctor's attention quickly turned back to the area behind the gates. She dashed upto them and looked through, lowering her head. Her jaw dropped as she saw, right where older Delgado had stood…_

_A tiny golden, glowing crack._

_It was the last thing she saw before she was pulled out of the vision…_

"Doctor! Doctor, are you alright?!"

The Doctor mumbled as she struggled to gain her bearings. "Oh… oboy… "

Mels looked down at her, worry etched on her face. "Whatever you did, it knocked you both for a loop. Are you OK?"

The Doctor wearily raised her head, to see Delgado passed out on the ground a few feet away. Seemed she was _literally_ dragged out the touch-telepathy.

"Doctor, say something," pleaded Mels.

Holding her head, the Doctor let out a breath. "I've seen… _quite_ enough."

TO BE CONTINUED


	38. Chapter 38

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 38

"I can't take anymore. I just can't… "

Graham watched sadly as the woman his age sat against the TARDIS control console, head in hands. After the giant glowing crack appeared and seemingly snatched the Doc, Yaz, Mels and the two from the enemy time machine away, Graham made the executive decision to return to the relative safety of the blue box. Amy was dead against it, desperate to find her lost love, but Graham knew this was what the Doc would have wanted. Them safe. For now at least.

Indeed, if the Doc did not return soon, Graham would quickly change his mind…

In the meantime, his attention was focused on the poor woman who seemingly lost everything. Graham's heart bled for what Amy had seemingly gone through. As painful as her loss was, at least he and Grace had three wonderful years together. But Amy never knew the bliss of being married to the love of your life: it was taken from her.

Graham only met this "Missy" once, but he could instantly tell she was pure evil. The way she sneered over all the panicked people on that street - and _insulted_ him! The way the Doc - the most caring and loving person Graham ever met - could not hide her disgust for her. The way Missy casually held a big gun to the Time Lady's head. Graham did not need to be as smart as the Doctor or even Yaz to know Missy was _bad news_.

And where _were_ the Doc and Yaz? They were taken by one of the increasingly-growing anomalies, both them and Mels gone in an instant.

"Look," said Ryan, who paused his working of the console. During downtime between adventures, the Doc had been teaching the kids how to the "old girl", as she phrased it. Both Ryan and Yaz were quick learners, and Graham felt a great swell of pride at his step grandson learning something so fantastic. The Doc offered to teach him too, but he politely declined: the TARDIS was abit of a leap from a bus.

"… whatever's happened to them," continued Ryan, "everythin' will be fine. Either they'll get back here or we'll find 'em." That was what Ryan was doing with the controls: trying to get the TARDIS to find the Doctor, Yaz or Mels' biosignature. No luck so far, unfortunately. "The Doctor hasn't failed us yet."

"Don't you start too," snapped Amy. "I know you mean well, but the Doctor let me down decades ago. Whether he knew it or not, he didn't stop that bitch from taking me, taking Clara _from_ me… this is all his fault… he wasn't there when I needed him the most… "

Ryan frowned. "Hey, don't say that! The Doctor's the best! She always does all she can to… "

"I don't want to hear it," Amy interrupted. "Are _you_ in love with… _her_ too?"

Ryan darted his shocked face at Graham, who sighed. He knew Yaz tried talking to Amy earlier… guess the Scot deduced the policewoman's feelings as easily as he and Ryan did months ago.

"Listen, Miss, I'm tryin' to be… " began Ryan.

At that, Graham strode over and raised his hand. "Son, why don't you carry on tryin' to find the Doc and Yaz, yeah?"

Ryan clenched his jaw for a moment, then shook his head. "Sure. Fine." He walked around the console so he was not near them.

Graham sat down beside Amy against the console and looked at her. "You don't really mean what you said… do you?"

Amy was quiet for awhile, and Graham could read her like a book. Her expression was one of bitterness, anger, frustration… but something else. "I don't know," she eventually said. "I loved him… her… _him_, fuck, whatever… for so long… " She turned to him. "Not that way. Well, at first that way. But once Clara… " She stopped again, and let out a sob. "God… God, I've missed her so much… "

Graham felt his own eyes water. "I know what it's like to lose someone," he said quietly, and could almost feel Ryan tense from the other side of the console. "But I had something to keep living for. That's what we have to do, if we want to go on."

"But I didn't," Amy spat. "I had nothing to live for anymore."

Graham sighed again, and his next words were spoken like they were the most obvious thing in all time and space. "Well… now you do. You have a chance to be with the one you love again. And that's a gift… something you can't waste. I'd give anything to have one day with Grace again, but you… you have a _real_ chance to get Clara back. And y'know why you have that chance? The Doctor."

She looked at him, tears in her eyes.

"She came back to you," said Graham. "She knows she let you down, but she's doing everything she can to fix it. Deep down, you know that."

Eventually, Amy nodded.

"I know it's hard," Graham breathed. "You want to scream at the universe for taking what you can't live without… but you can't waste your energy on that. Instead, focus on getting her back. Help the Doctor help _you_."

Amy stared at him for a few beats, then smiled slightly and gave another nod. She took a deep gulp of air and got to her feet. "In that case," she said to Ryan, "how goes… ?" She stopped when she saw his face. "Are… you crying?"

Ryan hastily wiped a cheek dry. "What? _No_. I, I just… "

Amy's smile widened a little. "You're a good kid." She tutted. "Sorry for what I said."

"It's already forgotten," said Ryan with a grin, though it quickly turned into a grimace. "OK, probably _not_ the best choice of words, given the situation… "

Graham and Amy just shared a chuckle…

TO BE CONTINUED


	39. Chapter 39

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 39

"You won't do it, you know. I don't know why you keep trying."

Yaz narrowed her eyes and clenched her jaw at the words. "How many times do I have to tell you? Shut. Up." She then turned back to her task which she was utterly failing at. Specifically, opening the heavy door to the room they were stuck in.

"They" being her and Missy.

The long tendrils from the glowing crack grabbed and deposited them into a mysterious metal room. A quick scan from Missy's own sonic device revealed they were on the same planet, but clearly in a different area to where the two TARDISes landed. The open field with surrounding woodside they all met up in had no evidence of nearby construction. It was possible this was an underground bunker of some sort. "Are you sure you can't get this open?"

Missy rolled her eyes. "My my, the Doctor has really lowered his st… _her_ standards with you, hasn't… _she_?" The Time Lady - but not _Yaz's_ Time Lady - grinned, something which made Yaz feel almost sick. "_Her_. _She_. I'm still shocked at that. I mean, I know I shouldn't be - I did it first, of course - but still. He always did copy me… " Missy gave a shrug. "Anyway, as I said before, the door is too strong for my sonic, I'm afraid. Perhaps there's wood in it somewhere. Don't you think I want to get out of here as much as you do? I have a family to protect, after all."

"You don't sound too worried about them at the minute," Yaz spat, and instantly regretted it. The look she got in response made her blood freeze. Missy looked like she would kill her right then and there. She gave the policewoman a steely glare, and Yaz barely contained a gulp. But she would be brave: she would not cower for this woman. She would make the Doctor proud.

However, Missy simply tilted her head and spoke slowly. "My wife is more important to me than anything, little girl. I fully intend to get back to her. All I need is silence to think. The only reason I don't end you here and now is because I left my vaporiser in my other jacket, and simply snapping your neck would be too… undignified." When Yaz blinked, Missy continued. "Not for you, of course. I mean undignified for me. No skill in that - too beastly."

"And vaporising someone _is_ skilful?"

"When it's with _my_ vaporiser which _I_ designed and built, yes," said Missy. "Honestly, what is it with the Doctor and chatty little girls? You certainly fit her type."

Despite the situation, Yaz could not help the blush and flush of pride hit her. Still, she had to be careful. The Doctor warned her about the Mistress. Once learning her old foe was involved in this, the Doctor explained just how dangerous Missy was to her fam, leaving no room for error: never let her get under your skin. One mistake, and you were done for.

But Yaz could not help herself. "Is that why you fell out? You weren't chatty enough? Or were you just _not her type_?" Part of Yaz knew she should be doing this, but another part just wanted to get her own digs in; it was clear Missy was a huge thorn in the Doctor's side, causing her all sorts of grief over the years. Centuries? Millennia? Plus, it was Missy's fault Yaz was separated from her secret love. If she had not fired on the TARDIS…

Another death stare from the rogue Time Lady, and again Yaz feared for her life. "I should have known."

Yaz frowned. "You wot?"

At that, Missy actually smirked. "Yes… clever and talks back, but not clever _enough_. Typical. Just like the rest. Well, except for my Clara, of course."

"The Doctor told us all about what you've done to Clara Oswald," said Yaz. "I've encountered some rotten things in my time on the force, and even worse travelling with the Doctor, but _you_… you really take the cake, lady." She looked at Missy and felt pure disgust. "Kidnapping her, stealing her away from the love of her life, forcing her to have children… you're the worst offender all rolled into one. If we were on Earth and the UK still had it, I'd make sure you got the death penalty."

"So an empty threat, then," Missy tutted. "And I _saved_ Clara, idiot. I knew she would be much happier with me than with that worthless ginger."

"I've known Amy for three days and she has more worth in her little finger than you have in all your bodies combined infinitely."

"Well, you've only known me for two days," said Missy. "Perhaps if you travelled with me for awhile I could change your mind."

Yaz's face fell into a deep grimace. "I'm not even gonna dignify that sickening sentence with answer. Besides, my place is with the Doctor."

"And how many times have we _aaaall_ heard that line?" Missy drawled. "Do you think you're special, little one? Do you know how many young women the Doctor has suckered into that blue police box? You're just the latest in a long line."

Yaz's chest clenched at the words. She knew them to be true, but to actually hear them out loud… "I'm honoured to be with her," she said as resolutely as she could.

"But you're not with her in the way you _want_ to be… am I right?" Missy's grin widened even as Yaz's eyes did likewise. "Like I said, typical. The Doctor does it to all of you, you poor things. Takes you in, promises the universe… and leaves you as lovesick fools who would do anything and everything, expect something in return, and get _nothing_. Correct, hm?"

Yaz's head lowered. "You don't know what you're talkin' about… "

Missy's head fell back in a loud laugh. "Ha, _please_! I can practically _smell_ your pining! You really are pathetic, aren't you? Don't you get it? I know the Doctor better than anyone in the universe. She will _never_ feel anything like that for _any_ of you. It really would be best if you told her to take you home to whatever hovel you came from. Or if she wiped your memory… _which_, by the way, she's done to others before."

Yaz's hands balled into fists. One more word and…

"But even if she doesn't, it won't matter," continued Missy. "No, once the Doctor's had her fill of you, she'll send you back of her own accord, then move onto the next one. She'll forget all about you. At best, you'll end up as a ratty old photo in a box she shows to her latest nubile young thing. You'll mean nothing to her. Besides… " - Missy ran her eyes up and down Yaz, making the young woman nearly squirm - "… you're not even one of the pretty ones."

And with that, Missy was punched in the face for the second time in as many days. Yaz hit even harder than Amy. The policewoman was about to let loose with some very excessive - though also very _necessary_ \- force, when she heard voices from the other side of the door. "Missy? I know you're in there!"

Yaz's teary eyes lit up, even with her heart crushed. The Doctor found them…

TO BE CONTINUED


	40. Chapter 40

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 40

"Y'know, this would be a lot easier if we weren't dragging this guy with us."

The Doctor waved off her latest companion's comment. "Couldn't leave him, Mels. If you're really Amy and Clara's daughter, and I'm really your affectionate aunt, then you should know that." The two women were literally dragging the still unconscious Delgado in a makeshift sack made from the Doctor's coat and some rope she of course had in her pockets. Yes, that meant the coat would probably be useless once this was all over, but the Time Lady was indeed not going to just leave him on an unknown planet.

She already did that with someone very dear to her…

Mels grinned. "I do know that, Doctor. It's just, well, after seeing what this guy has done and caused, I won't deny that I'd seriously consider leaving him there to eaten by moles or something."

"Charming," the Doctor drawled.

"I'm kinda surprised he's still out, though," Mels continued.

The Doctor shrugged. "He might be a half-Gallifreyan who's created a time loop and thus subconsciously lived for a very, very long time, but he's still not in my league. I won't deny I don't enjoy telepathic visions, but my experience has given me a lot more resistance. That said, he shouldn't be out for too much longer. If he is, I'll have to help him."

Mels grimaced, but let it go. "So… you saw it. You saw what he did?"

The Doctor nodded sadly. "Yeah. It's all true. He merged with his infant self and sealed the time loop… and in the process, though I don't know how, created these cracks that are appearin' everywhere."

"So what's the plan?" Mels knew Aunty Doctor always had a plan.

"We get back to the TARDIS and put in the coordinates of the _exact_ phase of time he merged with himself," explained the Doctor. Though both she and Mels were carrying Delgado behind them, the Doctor had one arm out, sonic directing them back to the police box.

Mels' brow furrowed. "Say that again?"

"Delgado's life might be a time loop where he was always born without interference, but the fact that his subconscious remembers his _original_ self - the one who escaped the time lock and did the merging, essentially _downloaded_ himself into… er, himself… means a nexus point can be extracted."

Mels had little idea what that meant, but knew from experience _the Doctor_ did. She would fix this, Mels was certain. The Time Lady would realign the timeline, undo Delgado's meddling and ensure Amy and Clara stayed together, and thus her sister being born.

Suddenly, the Doctor stopped as she noticed something. On the side of a nearby hillside was a distinctly-_none_-hilly door. It almost looked like…

"Is that a Hobbit hole?" asked Mels.

"Too metal-y," replied the Doctor, whose sonic screwdriver then began buzzing. The Doctor inspected it and frowned. "Whatever it is, it has heavy arton readings. C'mon." Before Mels could protest, the full Gallifreyan was diverged from their path.

Mels yelled after her retreating form. "Oh, don't worry, I'll just drag him on my own, shall I?" At that, the Doctor turned back with an apologetic snrunch on her face and resumed sharing Delgado's still-comatose body. That did not stop her sending them on her new route, however.

Quickly arriving at the doorway, the Doctor waved her sonic infront of it. "Metal… not very thick, but quite heavy. Looks like the entrance to a bunker."

"What would a bunker be doing in the middle of nowhere?"

The Doctor shrugged. "Who's to say what this area really is, Mels? This could be an neutronic bomb testing site. Or a dead city that's been overgrown and this is the only thing that's left visible? It might even lead underground."

Mels narrowed her eyes. "I know that look, Aunty. We're _not_ going in to investigate."

The Time Lady grit her teeth. "Afraid we are, Mels. I'm readin' two people on the other side, and one of 'em… I'd know her biosignature anywhere." She then turned and banged on the metal door. "Missy? I know you're in there!

Silence for a beat, then a voice neither Mels nor the Doctor expected. "Doctor! How'd you find us?!"

The Doctor's eyes bulged. "_Yaz_?! What're you and Missy doin' in a hillside bunker?!"

"Oh, so that's where we are," came a second, more arrogant voice. "Not that I didn't deduce that myself, of course."

The Doctor's face contorted into one of anger. "Missy, if you've hurt Yaz I'll… "

"Not much you can do on the other side of this door, love," came the cocksure reply. "And before you ask, yes, I _can_ open the door myself… I just wanted some time to chat with you latest little pet."

Mels could feel the rage building in her affectionate aunt. "She's stuck," she whispered to the Doctor. "There's no way she'd stay cooped up in something like that."

"No, but I can't say anything to antagonise her," the Doctor breathed. "She might hurt Yaz." She looked down at the young man in her ruined coat. "Move Delgado so she won't see him when I open the door. Might buy us some time." Mels did as she instructed.

"Doctor, please help," came Yaz's frustrated voice.

The Doctor instantly pointed her sonic at the door lock, but nothing happened. Whatever it was made of, it resisted Sheffield steel. Perhaps… "Missy, if we both use our sonics on the lock, it might work."

"I told you," came the pissy reply, "I'm perfectly capable of… "

"Missy, we all know it's the only way out… " - the Doctor almost bit her lip - "… and for you to get back to Clara." She closed her eyes even as Mels audibly growled.

Another beat. "Fine," came the eventual response. "Ready when you are." With that, the Doctor repeated her action with her screwdriver, and soon, the lock unclicked.

The heavy metal door opened and Yaz came bounding out and enveloped the Doctor in a deep hug. The Time Lady automatically returned the embrace, as Mels could not hold back a smile. "Yaz, are you OK?" the Doctor asked, desperately inspecting her best friend for signs of injury. "Did she hurt you?" She then noticed Yap's eyes. "Have… you been crying?"

Yaz looked broken. "I… I… "

Meanwhile, of to the side, Delgado began to stir…

The Doctor's face contorted into a scowl, and she locked eyes with Missy. "Mels, take care of Yaz." She delicately broke their embrace and manoeuvred the policewoman away from the entranceway and to Mels. "Me and my 'old friend' are going to have a talk."

Mels and Yaz looked shocked. "But… "

Before anything else could happen, the still-bound Delgado threw himself as much as he could into the group, nudging the Doctor just enough to make her trip into the bunker. As he slumped back to the ground, Delgado also caused the door to swing back closed.

Mels and Yaz yelled desperately. "_Doctor_! _No_!"

But it was too late. The door locked back shut and the two Time Ladies were alone in the bunker. The Doctor crawled her hands along the door, instinctively trying to find a seam, but was stopped by the warm-yet-_ice_-cold voice behind her. Slowly, she turned to face the true cause of all this.

"So," Missy said dismissively, "you wanted to talk?"

TO BE CONTINUED


	41. Chapter 41

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 41

The Doctor had not felt anger like this for a long, long time. Certainly never in this incarnation. But the woman infront of her had done so much, caused untold damage, hurt so many people… people the Doctor cared about and loved. And the look on her face now…

The Mistress had a smugness the Doctor - almost - wished she could punch away.

It was just the two of them. No distractions, no way out. After the door locked shut, the Doctor assured Yaz and Mels on the other side to be calm and patient - she would find a way out, once she had it out with her oldest enemy…

"Well?" Missy asked. "If you're not going to say anything, I guess I'll have to start. So… how does it feel?"

The Doctor narrowed her eyes. "How does _what_ feel? My emotions towards you right now?"

"No, silly," said Missy, rolling her eyes. "I mean… " - she motioned up and down the Doctor's body, then her own - "… _this_? I told you it was something else, didn't I?"

The Doctor chuckled incredulously. "Seriously? _That's_ the first thing you think about?"

"Well, it _is_ quite a change, isn't it?" Missy's eyes were sparkling. "Especially for you, darling. I mean, this is my second time… I think. I've had so many regenerations, it's hard to keep up. As you can relate."

The Doctor tutted. "So many regenerations… and they're always the same disappointment."

Her foe smirked. "Come now, you should be used to it. Besides, I'm not interested in your opinion anymore, Doctor. No, I have a wife now - much more important things to… "

She was cut off by the Doctor dashing to her, grabbing her lapels and shoving her against the wall. A look of genuine surprise crossed the Mistress' face. The Doctor was rarely one to get physical, even during the more grumpier lives. "Let her _go_, Missy! I mean it - take me back to your TARDIS and give her to me _now_!"

"She's not your property, Doctor," Missy said. "She's _mine_. She's been mine for twenty years and she'll be mine forever."

The Doctor's breath caught. "Twenty… but… it hasn't been that long… "

"For you, maybe," Missy shrugged. "Really, love, you've done more time travelling that me - can't you grasp relative time? I've been keeping one step - no, _several_ steps ahead of you for two decades. I don't know how you finally found us, but I promise you, I'll never let Clara go."

Forcing down her guilt, the Doctor did not divulge the fact for all those years - twenty to Missy, just a few for the Doctor - she was not even _looking_ for them, having forgot Clara and Amy for all that time. "How'd you do it? Hypnosis? I'm going to say hypnosis."

"Oh, I assure you - she came of her own free will," boasted the Mistress. "And she hasn't regretted it ever since."

The Doctor shook her head. "No… I know what you did, Missy. She told me. You seduced her, and you slept together. And somehow, you got her pregnant. I'm guessing it was by looming, but it doesn't matter. She never would've _chosen_ to be with you - you twisted her and she was _guilted_ into it."

Another shrug. "The means are unimportant. The end is what matters. You should know that about me by now. Whatever I want, I get. And I wanted Clara Oswald more than anything in… " She suddenly stopped, but it was too late.

"Oh my God… " whispered the Doctor. "You… actually love her."

For the first time, Missy looked unsure. "And what if I do, Doctor?" she eventually asked.

Could it be true? Could her oldest enemy actually have feelings beyond selfishness, hate and lust? The Doctor closed her eyes momentarily, then sighed. "I never thought I'd say this, but that's no excuse. You took Clara away from her soulmate, and in the process… "

"Don't be so sentimental!" snapped Missy. "Bloody hell, I thought the you with the trainers was soppy, but _really_? You now actually believe in 'true love' and all that crap? Grow up, Doctor. All that matters is that I _wanted_ her, and I _got_ her. And everything I did to keep her, all the annoying little brats she birthed so she wouldn't leave, the hell I went through to make sure she'd live forever… "

The Doctor's face creased. "Forever? What're you… " She then audibly gasped. "You found a way to give Humans a regenerative cycle?!" The Doctor's jaw clenched. "How? _Tell me_!"

Missy frowned. "What?"

"Tell me how you made Clara able to regenerate!" demanded the Doctor.

"Aren't you going to scold me?" asked Missy. "Tell me off for 'messing with the natural laws'? Why so interes... " She suddenly paused, realisation slowly dawning on her. She glanced back at the doorway, and the final piece came together. Her jaw dropped. "_Noooooooooo_... Really?! You actually... ?"

The Doctor gulped, a moment of vulnerability crossing her features.

Which, of course, Missy noticed. "Well, my dear, I _am_ surprised. I never knew you had it in you." With that, she chuckled. "She doesn't even know, does she? Of course she doesn't - the great and legendary Doctor must be above those types of feelings." She smirked. "That's what you want everyone to believe, anyway. But we both know the truth, don't we?" She then tilted her head. "Still, I shouldn't think it matters now."

The Doctor's mouth became a thin line. "What did you do to Yaz? She was upset when we opened the door… "

"What a silly name," Missy said simply. "Anyway, I just told her a few home truths. Or at least, I _thought_ they were truths. Regardless, she believed them. Guess you'll have to get a new pet now, won't… "

Missy was stopped when the Doctor threw her fist forward and cracked it against her jaw. The rogue Time Lady went down like a sack of spuds. "You _monster_!" the Doctor shrieked. "I thought there was still some good in you... I tried and I tried and I _tried_, but you proved without a shadow of a doubt that there's no hope for you whatsoever! You know it's very not like me to say this, so believe me now - you _sicken_ me!"

Missy knelt on the floor, nursing her face. "Just because I insulted your… "

"For _EVERYTHING_!" the Doctor screamed. "Centuries of trying to conquer the universe! Siding with the most evil beings of all time! Taking two of my closest friends ever and tearing them apart, just so you could, could _groom_ one of them to your own sick ends! Having children with her, not out of love, but just to _keep her with you_! Is everyone and everything a _pawn to you_?! Just a _toy_ for your _amusement_?! What must I _DO_ to make you _see sense_?!"

Before anything else could be said or done, a small explosion sounded, and the Doctor and Missy turned to see the bunker door swing back open, it's lock blown off by a rifle-brandishing Mels. Next to her, Yaz dashed forward and grabbed the Doctor's arm. "We're leaving - _now_."

With that, Yaz pulled the Doctor out the room, while simultaneously pulling the door back closed. Mels then jammed the rifle through the doorhandle to make up for the destroyed lock.

"We can't leave her," the Doctor insisted. "She… "

"Doctor," Yaz interrupted. "Remember the _big picture_."

The Doctor swallowed, then looked at a desperate Mels. "You're right," she said quietly. On that, the three quickly left, dragging a once-more-unconscious Delgado with them…

TO BE CONTINUED


	42. Chapter 42

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 42

"How many times do I have to say it? I'm not telling you _anything_."

The Doctor barely managed to restrain her frustration, if only for the double-negative. They were all back in the TARDIS, which was slowly healing herself from the assault by Missy's time machine. The Doctor's fam were relieved when she and Mels returned, though the Time Lady was pleased they had not attempted a rescue, even if they were about to do so once the TARDIS found the pair's whereabouts, which revealed they were nearly back anyway.

But now Delgado was awake, restrained in a chair, and they had to again try and extract the knowledge of the exact point his original self - the Delgado who escaped the time lock - merged with himself as an infant. Hopefully, once they knew that, they could find a "loophole", a nexus point where they could break the time loop Delgado created and return him to the locked-off Time War, thus preventing him from orchestrating Clara and Missy getting together and Amy being abandoned in the past.

That would also, theoretically, wipe away the glowing cracks from throughout time… which the Doctor was finally getting a good idea of what they were, thanks to the vision.

That being the case, the image of Clara holding a baby - _Missy's_ baby - was still one which shook the Doctor to her core…

"You've _lost_, Delgado," insisted Mels. "Accept it. Your family was never meant to exist in the first place, and… "

"_Don't say that_!" the young man snapped. "My family has _just_ as much right to exist as yours! My timeline was as valid as any other - _moreso_ \- but it was wiped out in the war… "

"Along with countless others," Mels said. "But the one which emerged from the war _is_ the proper timeline. Without it, the universe is doomed."

Delgado frowned. "What _are_ you talking about?"

Mels was quiet a moment, looking to Amy. The Doctor could see a bond already forming between the two, between mother and daughter. Mels then looked at the Time Lady, who gave an assuring nod. The time for keeping things on a "need-to-know" basis was gone. "In the far future, they'll be a crisis, one which only my sister can avert. But because of your tampering, she's now gone, and for whatever reason that period is locked off. Which means the universe will end catastrophically."

Delgado was silent for a moment, then simply shook his head. "And I thought my mother had an ego."

"It's true," the Doctor said. That seemed to reach Delgado, for whatever reason: perhaps, even in his original timeline, he never knew the Doctor to lie.

He still did not cave, however. Instead he simply shrugged. "Well… it doesn't matter. Missy will find a way for us to survive. She always does." He looked at his mother's adversary. "Doesn't she, Doctor?"

The Time Lady sighed inwardly: this was getting nowhere. There was no telling how much time they had: Delgado seemed confident Missy would find a way out that bunker and make her way back to them. The Doctor was unsure if the TARDIS was well enough yet to shield from a possible intrusion. "Delgado, please," she said, "this is about more than just us. This is about the very fate of the universe. Not even your mother would want armageddon."

"You don't understand, do you?" he said rhetorically. "Even if I _wanted_ to tell you, I couldn't. I don't even _know_. My original self never passed it on. But even if he did, nothing you could do or say could get me to tell you. No amount of threats, no amount of warnings, no amount of pleading - _nothing_. My parents simply _have_ to be together - and to hell with the rest universe if need be."

And with that, an impasse was made. The Doctor felt powerless. She could tell Delgado felt, from the very bottom of his soul, Clara and Missy belonged together.

Was he right… ?

"To hell with _this_," Mels suddenly said, and strode over to Delgado. Before anyone else could do anything, she clasped his head with both hands and closed her eyes.

The Doctor instantly knew what the young woman was doing. "Mels, no!"

"He merged with his original self in body and mind," said Mels, frowning. "Somewhere deep in his head… is what we're looking for."

Delgado's eyes went frantic. "No! Stop! Get _out_!"

"Mels, _stop_!" The Doctor ordered: she could not condone this. Coercion was one thing, but forceful… ? She grabbed Mels and tried prising her off, but the girl did not budge. She was holding onto Delgado with all her strength.

"I have… to do this… " Mels hissed, as her closed eyes tightened and her jaw clenched.

"No you don't!" screamed the Doctor. "We'll find another way!" Meantime, Yaz and Ryan had moved around to assist the Time Lady in separating Mels from Delgado, but Mels managed to nudge them aside.

"_Noooo_! _Stooooop_!" Delgado's face was one of agony.

The Doctor grit her teeth. "_Mels_!"

"Have to… go… deeper… " the young woman grimaced…

"If you go any deeper, you'll shatter his mind!" the Doctor warned. "Amy, talk to her!"

Amy was a picture of conflict. It was clear she did not know what to do. "I… I… "

The Doctor felt a tear go down her cheek. "There _has_ to be a better way than… !"

Suddenly both Mels and Delgado let out enormous screams, roaring in agony as the touch-telepathy broke into the deepest part of the latter's subconscious. The Doctor, her fam and Amy almost had to cover their ears at the feral sounds.

Then, Mels and Delgado quieted, and their faces fell. Blood trickled from Mels nose, while Delgado's eyes rolled into the back of his head. Mels' hands finally dropped, and her eyes fluttered closed as she lost balance. Amy barely managed to catch her daughter as she collapsed. Delgado, meanwhile, sat unmoving, his head down.

The Doctor did not know what to do. As fate had it, she heard Mels mumbling from within Amy's embrace, and the Time Lady dashed over to her. "I got it… " the girl breathed. She sounded barely conscious. "I know where to go… "

"Doctor... ?"

The Gallifreyan turned to see Yaz next to the prone Delgado, a hand each on his wrist and neck. Any relief the Doctor felt at gaining what they needed evaporated with the expression on the policewoman's face.

"He's dead."

TO BE CONTINUED


	43. Chapter 43

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 43

Sometimes the Mistress was not as forward-thinking as she led people to think.

In her lives, she made grandiose schemes, plotted plans so intricate they would make any supercomputer ever made go mad trying to outthink. Why, she even managed to wrest a companion from the Doctor - and not just any companion, but the Impossible Girl herself, the one who seemed more impossibly tied to the old codger than any other in recent memory.

But sometimes, in her haste to go into action, Missy… neglected certain details.

She sat on the floor in the bunker, waiting impatiently for her rifle to charge. Trust that, in her eagerness to avenge her Clara, to not even make sure she packed a fully-powered weapon. It was why she had not simply shot the door lock when she and whatshername - the Doctor's latest pet - found themselves trapped. In hindsight, it was a good job Missy never tried firing the rifle when she had her "old friend" dead-to-rights earlier - that would have been _right_ embarrassing.

The Time Lady had been alone in the bunker for awhile now - _too long_. There was no telling what the Doctor and her cohorts were doing. They might even have broken into her TARDIS and taken Clara.

The idea actually scared Missy. She had to admit it now: losing Clara Oswald was the one thing which _terrified_ the Mistress. And it was not because it would be yet another loss to the Doctor, or the principle of having something of hers taken. No, it was the simple fact… she could not live without her poppet. She knew as much when she gave Clara regenerative abilities, as she refused to let her grow old and die as Humans did so pathetically quickly.

Missy could not lose Clara. After everything she did to win her, she would never let her go. She would not lose her back to the Doctor or that annoying-as-shit Amy.

Thinking of another of the Doctor's companions made Missy realise she now had something useful - knowledge. She could tell the usually-frigid-as-anything Doctor's feelings for her latest plaything were deeper than usual. Perhaps this "Yaz" could be a _real_ bargaining chip against the soppy fool. Missy bit her lip. Perhaps she could keep Yaz anyway; not that Missy would ever cheat on Clara - a fact she herself found hard to believe - but, well, there _were_ secret dungeons in the family TARDIS…

Missy was brought out of her musings by the _ding_ of her rifle: it was fully charged. "Finally!" She pushed herself to her feet and picked the weapon up, then pointed it at the door. That Mels girl - _another_ nuisance who refused to be polite and fucking die - might have blown the lock off, but something was blocking Missy opening it. Probably a rock or something. Still, one shot from her rifle should do the trick. The Time Lady began putting pressure on the trigger…

There was a quick thud from outside, then the door slowly opened, revealing...

"_Clara_!" Missy quickly dropped her weapon and dashed to her wife. The two embraced, Missy holding tight. "What are… how… "

"I… I woke up in the sickbay," came Clara's muffled voice. Missy broke the hug so she could look at Clara face-to-face. "I… you weren't there, and I was worried. Our TARDIS tracked you down to here, and I came for you. I saw the door jammed shut with a gun, but… "

"You _left_ the TARDIS," Missy seethed. "Clara, how many times have I told you? Your safety is the most important thing: if I'm not with you, you can't ever leave our home. It's just too dangerous. What if something else happened to you?!"

"It wasn't far," Clara insisted. "Really, it's just about 200 yards away. Bit of a windy path, but I just _had_ to come get you. Something… something terrible's happened."

Missy stroked her Human's hair. "It's OK, angel. You just had a fall, that's all. The stress of the last few days must've just been too much for you, my dear, sweet… "

"What?" Clara frowned. "Oh, you mean… well, yes, I _did_ wonder why I was in sickbay, but… that's not important. Missy, it's the children! They were there too! With needle marks!"

Crap. Missy should have known this would happen. It was a drastic measure indeed to sedate their younger offspring, to keep them out the way until this little "escapade" was done and dusted. But Missy just could not be bothered to deal with them. They were annoying at the best of times, let alone when Missy had murder on her mind… well, _vital_ murder. "Well, erm… " How could Missy pin this on the Doctor?

"And look!" Clara rolled up her sleeve. "I have the same mark."

"What?" That surprised the Time Lady.

"Missy, where are Delgado and Cole?"

Crap again. Everything was falling apart. This was supposed to be a simple seek-and-destroy mission: kill two interfering girls - Mels and Amy - be done with it and carry on living with the most beautiful and perfect woman in all time and space, while steering away from her old foe. Was that _so_ much to ask for?!

"OK, OK… " Missy stalled. Really, there was only one thing they could do. Fortunately, if the TARDIS was really as near as Clara claimed, this could still be salvaged. "Let's get back to the TARDIS, and track them like you tracked me. Then we'll deal with the other little ones." It was a largely empty promise, as Missy knew very well where Cole was - literally dead in space - and did not even give a crap about Delgado either. Like she thought when she abandoned Cole, she and Clara could always have more brats.

But their time machine was - hopefully - still right next to the Doctor's, and Missy hopefully still had a chance to take Mels and Amy out. Now her wife was awake, Missy did not specifically feel the need to "avenge" her… but there was more to it than that. It was a matter of principle, and the fact those two women posed genuine threats to the Masters-Oswald family. If they were gone, Missy could resume the task of simply staying away from the Doctor…

Missy looked into her wife's large, stunning eyes - so full of worry, so full of fear. She gripped Clara's hand hard and began the journey back to their TARDIS, rifle ready for anything which moved…

TO BE CONTINUED


	44. Chapter 44

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

_4\. This addresses the long-forgotten plothole I teased in my story, _Guilty or Innocent?_._

* * *

PART 44

Yaz tentatively entered the medibay and her heart almost broke at what she saw. The Doctor was sitting beside one of the beds, hunched over, head in hands… staring at the still body on the bed. Delgado's body.

Yaz took a deep breath. After what happened, everything felt unreal. Everyone froze when Yaz declared Delgado dead, and the Doctor just glared, tears pouring down. Graham and Ryan were stunned into silence. Amy, while holding the fallen Mels, blinked rapidly.

It was seemed rather numb after that. The Doctor ordered Mels be taken away, and Amy helped her time-displaced daughter to her room. The Time Lady then asked her team to help get Delgado to the medibay to confirm his death. Yaz knew the Doctor did not doubt her expertise, but just wanted to make sure… or rather, hope she was wrong.

But Yaz was not. Delgado was gone. The strain of having his mind invaded, with Mels extracting the vital information they needed from deep in his head, was too much for him. He was essentially lobotomized, then died.

Yaz saw death before. But not like this. In a way even moreso than Prem, this was personal. It happened in the TARDIS. And it happened right infront of her. Yaz cursed herself for being unable to stop it: as a police officer, she was trained to help people - to save people. But Mels proved even more desperate to achieve _her_ goal. While Yaz doubted the girl outright _meant_ to kill Delgado, it was clear she was prepared to do _anything_ to undo the damage he caused.

And in her time in the TARDIS, Yaz learnt, when dealing with the types of situations the Doctor got in, "acceptable losses" were apparently a very real thing.

But to look at the Time Lady now, it was obvious she did not like it. Yaz sighed at how defeated the Doctor looked. She was staring at Delgado's still form, as if willing him to come back. "Hey," Yaz softly said.

It was like a foghorn in the quiet medibay, and the Doctor's head darted up so fast Yaz feared she might get whiplash. "Oh, Yaz," she blurted. "Hi. S… sorry, didn't know you were there."

Yaz slowly approached and gave a faint smile. "What are you doing here?"

The Doctor took a gulp, and flashed a smile - a heartbreakingly-fake smile. "Just thinking. You know me, always thinking."

Yaz knew whatabout. "Doctor… "

"Before she passed out, Mels wrote the info down, and I've put it into the TARDIS' navigation systems," the Doctor continued. "Once she's all healed up, the old girl will be able to take us to the exact point the timeline was changed."

Yaz bit her lip. "Doctor… "

"That is, if we can find a nexus point in the vortex and break the time loop so we can get to the _original_ Delgado, and not a time loop Delgado. Because otherwise it wouldn't matter. We have to stop the _original_ Delgado, y'see - the one from the Time War."

"Doctor… "

"Oh, and I think I've finally figured out what the glowing cracks are. It's rather 'out-there', but I think the original Delgado merging both physically and mentally with his infant self was one time paradox the universe clearly was not happy with, and the by-product was the cracks. They've been feeding off mental energy - maybe because that's how he merged with himself - and wiping people's minds throughout time and space. Dependin' on the amount of arton energy, or perhaps population size, the cracks must grow themselves and go to absorbing physical matter as well. That would explain what happened on that street, y'see. I'm still not 100% sure why they teleported us earlier and didn't just suck us in, but… "

"_Doctor_!" Yaz cried, and that shut the Time Lady up. Sighing again, the policewoman sat next to her secret love and stared into her tear-stained eyes. "It's not your fault."

With that, the weak facade broke, and the Doctor's mouth twisted in pain. "He's dead, Yaz," she said quietly. "Another one. No matter how hard I try and help, people always die around me."

Those words cut into Yaz like a dagger. To see the woman she adored in such anguish, bordering on self-loathing…. "But it's _not_ your fault. You know that."

"Sometimes it is," the Time Lady whispered. "I've… done things, Yaz. Things I'm not proud of. I've… let people die. I try to always do the best, but… sometimes there's no other way."

"I know," Yaz said, her own eyes watering. "I might've forgotten about Grace, but I still remember Prem. As painful as it was, you knew he had to die so that history wasn't changed." That was why, when the Doctor said murder was _never_ the answer after the Kerblam! incident, Yaz knew she was wrong: Prem's murder preserved the Khan family line. She was also well aware Ryan's father could very well have died in the Doctor's efforts to eliminate the Dalek - which itself died. So despite the Gallifreyan's words, death was sometimes necessary for the greater good.

"Oh, Yaz," the Doctor groaned. "You just don't understand."

At that, the policewoman swallowed down grief. "You're right, I don't. Not fully. I can't begin to understand all you've been through, all the things you've done… all the pain you've suffered. But I know who you are, Doctor. I know the type of person you are. Maybe it's my police training, but I'm pretty good at reading people… and I've been able to read you since day one."

The Doctor's eyes bulged, and something else crossed her face: fear. "You… you have? I… I… "

Yaz was little confused at the reaction, but quickly realised what it was for. "I keep tellin' you - you're the most amazin' person I've ever met. I know in my heart that you wouldn't give up on someone - you wouldn't do something as bad as to let someone die - unless it was absolutely the _only_ solution."

"But Delgado… "

"_Wasn't your fault_," Yaz said emphatically. "Understand? Mels did it, and I'm pretty sure she didn't mean to." She tutted. "That doesn't mean I don't want to take her in on manslaughter charges, but that's probably not the best thing t'do right now… "

"What she did… the information we gained… " The Doctor looked pleadingly at Yaz. "How can we possibly use it, after what happened to get it?"

"Doctor, listen to me." With that tone, she made the Time Lady look straight into her eyes. "Tell me right now: do you truly believe everything that Mels has claimed? Do you _truly_ think this is something we need to do - that we need to go back and undo what Delgado did?"

The Doctor was silent for awhile. A _long_ while. Yaz waited with baited breath, wishing she could take all her secret love's pain and indecision away.

Finally, one word, so quiet it was almost silent. "Yes."

Yaz nodded. "Then that's all there is to it. I'll do everything I can to help, and I know Ryan and Graham will, too. We're with you all the way."

There was silence again... but it went too long.

They stared at eachother, as they had often done. Yaz was unable to look away from the Doctor's beautiful hazel eyes, and the Doctor seemed transfixed on Yaz's own. The Doctor gulped again. Yaz's breathing paused.

Slowly, they leaned closer towards each…

Suddenly, klaxons blared again, and the lights switched to red. The Doctor and Yaz pulled away from eachother, and the latter blinked hurriedly at the change in tone. "What's goin' on?!"

The Doctor's expression turned to one of determination. "I think Missy's back… "

TO BE CONTINUED


	45. Chapter 45

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 45

The Doctor and Yaz rushed into the console room, where Graham, Ryan, Amy and Mels were already waiting. "We haven't got much time!" the Doctor cried. She was more assured now, more certain about what had to be done. Trust Yasmin Khan to bring her out of her funk.

"Doctor, Missy is outside," Mels said. "We have to… "

The Doctor stopped her with a finger right in her face. "_You_ don't do anything. Again. _At all_. You are _majorly_ in my bad books right now, and even though I've been in your head, I still don't know you well enough to forgive you for what you've done, and I never might."

"You think I _wanted_ to do that?!" yelled Mels. "It was the _only way_!"

"You never even gave me a chance to… "

"Um, _hello_!" Ryan's interrupted. "Scary lady outside pointing a big gun at us."

"Yeah, and somethin' tells me the TARDIS ain't well enough to take another shot," Graham added. "So maybe we could point fingers later… " - the Doctor quickly darted her hand down - "… and get out of 'ere sharpish?"

The Time Lady looked at the readings. Indeed, Missy was right outside the police box, rifle in hand. There was a cable running from the end of the weapon to inside her own TARDIS, meaning she amplified the fire output. Graham was right: the old girl could _not_ sustain another hit and still keep her doors shut, let alone get them away.

"Come out, Doctor!" came Missy's voice through the intercom. "I know you have my boy in there. And the girl. _And_ the ginger. Give them all to me and I'll let you go and we can carry on our merry little chase."

The Doctor's eyes closed in pain at the mention of Delgado. Despite what he did, despite him being the architect of all this… she would carry his death with her. Just like all the others. Shaking her head, she turned to the console. "C'mon, old girl, don't fail me now. Tell me you've finished the calculations… "

A low mumble echoed through the room, and the Doctor grit her teeth. "What is it?" asked Yaz.

"The TARDIS can't finish the course setting," the Gallifreyan said. "Something's missing."

"Like what?" Amy said.

"This isn't just simple time travel," explained the Doctor. "We're breaking out of a time loop here - finding the nexus point where the _original_ Delgado began it. We have the data, but we don't have enough power to reach it. There's not enough artron energy."

"_Doctor_!" Missy. "You know I have no patience to lose!"

Graham's eyes were wide. "What do we do?!"

"I don't know, I don't know… " The Doctor held her head. "Too much going on at once… think, just _think_ you old fool!"

Meanwhile, Mels was silent, until a look of realisation crossed her face. She clenched her jaw and strode to the console. Before the Doctor noticed, she opened a panel under the console and retrieved two wires. She attached them to her head just as the Time Lady turned around.

"Mels? What're you… " The Doctor suddenly gasped. "Mels, _no_!"

"Too late," the young woman said. "I've started the link."

"No! You don't have to do this!"

"What's she doing?!" asked Amy.

"She's linked her mind to the TARDIS," the Doctor said desperately, "and she's gonna use her own artron energy to boost the power and get us where we need to go." She got right up close to Mels, who was already starting to slump. "Mels, break the connection. We have no way of knowing if you'll even survive."

"It's OK, Doctor… " the girl said, voice heavy. "You'll fix this… and it'll be like none of this happened." Mels then slowly turned to Amy and opened her eyes. The pain was evident, and the Doctor knew it was already too late. "Mummy… " the girl said, a small smile on her face.

Amy held her daughter's face in her hands, tears pouring. "It's alright, Mummy… once this is done, you and Mum will… be together… and me and River will… " - Mels' eyes fluttered closed - "… be with you again… " She then slipped into unconsciousness, Amy again barely stopping her fall.

Before anything else could be done, Missy's voice rang out once more. "That's it! Prepare to be boarded!"

"No… " the Doctor breathed. "We just need a few more seconds… "

Amy looked at the fallen Mels, the daughter she never knew. She then slowly turned her head to the doors of the TARDIS, before gently passing the limp form of Mels to the Doctor. "Amy?"

Silently crying, Amy strode to the exit. "What are you doing?" the Doctor asked.

Amy's mouth was a thin line. "It's like my little girl said… we'll all be together, but only if you fix this. And the only way you can do that is if you get the hell out of here. So I'll buy you some time."

"Amy… " The Doctor held out a hand. "Wai… "

The Girl Who Waited turned back one final time. "Don't let me down, raggedy man." Then, she opened the door and stepped out the TARDIS…

TO BE CONTINUED


	46. Chapter 46

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 46

Missy's brow raised at the person before her. "Alone, old woman?"

Amy stood firm infront of the police box. "Afraid so."

"So I'm guessing the Doctor's speakers can't pick up what I said, because my demands were pretty clear." Missy focused her weapon on Amy. "Where's the other one?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Amy simply responded.

Missy narrowed her eyes. The Doctor was playing one of his… _her_… games. That would not do. _Missy_ was the one who played games. Emphasis on _was_, anyway… for the past two decades, she was actively staying away from him… _her_, dammit.

Once she and Clara reached the two TARDISes just yards apart, Missy had to quickly get her wife into theirs. Which was easier said than done: like when the blue box materialised a couple of days ago while Missy was rescuing Clara from Mels, Clara was transfixed: the mere sight of the old TARDIS made the ex-teacher wide-eyed and slackjawed. Missy could not allow that. She could not allow even the slight _chance_ of Clara abandoning her and returning to the Doctor.

Fortunately, Missy knew her poppet's weak spot - their children. Once the Time Lady reminded Clara of their comatose offspring in their sickbay, that broke the spell the Impossible Girl was under at the sight of the police box. And while Missy sedated the little brats to keep them out the way, it turned out to be the perfect hook. As frustrating as they were, the children maintained their use - as anchors.

With Clara safely back inside their TARDIS and with the little shits, Missy retrieved a more powerful rifle from the weapons cupboard and, after making sure it was fully-charged, plugged it into the time machine's power supply. If fired, the gun would channel energy from the very heart of the TARDIS - enough to obliterate the Doctor's own pathetic box. That was what Missy presumed, anyway.

But things were not going _quite_ to plan. Missy demanded Delgado, Amy _and_ Mels. And while her son was not mandatory, the two women most definitely were. They _had_ to pay for what they did and the threat they presented.

Instead, however, only Amy emerged from the blue box. "Get the other one out here now," Missy demanded. "Or I'll vaporise you on the spot."

"I'm surprised you haven't already," said Amy.

Dammit. Did the Human know Missy ideally did not want to fire? Because eventhough she _was_ prepared to blast the other TARDIS open, the Time Lady knew it would be an enormous drain on her own time machine. It would take days, perhaps even weeks, to fully repower her TARDIS if she fired even once. She could not waste her rifle on Amy, and much like that Yaz girl, simple murder was not good enough. No, Missy wanted Amy and Mels to _suffer_.

But perhaps Missy had no choice. As much as she wished to hear their screams in her hidden dungeon, she might have to just do away with Amy and get inside the police box. "I'll say it one last time: get Mels out here or you die _right now_."

Amy frowned. "Just Mels? Whatabout your son?"

So, the Doctor _did_ have Delgado. Not that it mattered much: push come to shove, Missy could just palm Delgado's loss off to Clara, along with Cole's - still on her to-do list, by the way - thus giving Clara evenmore reason to resent, hopefully even _hate_ the Doctor. "Him too," Missy tutted.

"You don't even care, do you?" Amy sneered. "I knew you couldn't love anyone else but yourself."

"Do you think I _care_ what you think?" Missy said. "You're just a lowly, insignificant worm that had the audacity to think Clara belonged to. Clara is _mine_, do you hear me? _Mine_!"

Amy shook her head as her mouth became a thin line. "It's all about possession with you, isn't it? It isn't about love at all. Everything's just a pawn to you."

"Oh, _spare me_," Missy drawled. "I… " She stopped as a familiar grinding suddenly sounded, and her eyes widened as the blue police box dematerialised away. "What?! _No_!"

"Too late, bitch," spat Amy.

"Where have they gone?!" Missy aimed the rifle at at Amy's head. "_Tell me RIGHT NOW_!"

Amy stood steadfast. "They've gone to make sure none of this happens. That all the sick, twisted games that you and Delgado played to change history fail."

Missy was confused. "What _are_ you talking about? Delgado? He's as useless as the rest of the little pests I have to put up with."

"They're your… " Amy paused, clearly pained to say the words. "… children."

"Don't remind me," the Time Lady grumbled.

Amy looked at her in bewilderment. "You truly have no soul, do you? A mother should love her child more than anything. A mother should be willing to give everything they have for their child. And I'm doing that now… I gave them time to get away, because I saw my daughter risk everything she was to help… a daughter I never even had. Because _you_ robbed her from me." Amy took a breath, in almost pity, and most definitely disgust. "But _you_… you have a family… and you don't even care."

Missy briefly pondered Amy's pathetic speech. It appears Mels _was_ the daughter of Clara and Amy - no doubt from some worthless alternate reality. "I care plenty. They serve their purpose: Clara would never leave children. At least I only have to put up with three of them now."

"Three… " Amy bit her lip. "How many did… "

"Yes, Delgado's gone and I left Cole drifting in space like the worthless little turd he was," Missy snarled. "Now _tell me where_… "

"Missy… ?"

Oh no. Missy's breath caught as she sensed… no no no _no_!

Slowly, the Time Lady turned around…

Clara Masters-Oswald was staring at her with big, watering eyes…

TO BE CONTINUED


	47. Chapter 47

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 47

Clara felt overwhelming relief as she closely inspected Michelle, Gomez and Jenna. All three children rose a few minutes ago, and Clara could barely hold back the tears. Her babies were alright.

But two were still missing.

"Mummy, what's going on?" asked little Jenna.

Clara audibly gulped. "I… I'm not entirely sure," she choked. "But everything will be alright. Your mother and I will sort everything out." She hated lying to her children, but what else could she do? Things were _far_ from alright.

She and Missy reached their TARDIS, but once again the Impossible Girl found it impossible to move - or indeed, think coherently - at the sight of the other time machine. _His_ police box. Just like a couple of days ago, Clara was shocked into motionless at _the_ TARDIS.

No doubt sensing her wife's uncertainty, Missy quickly reminded Clara of their children lying comatose in their sickbay, which brought the ex-teacher out of her trance. Once inside their time machine, Clara tried convincing Missy to help rise the little ones, but the Mistress was adamant that she had "something important" to attend to… which obviously was the Doctor's TARDIS.

To say Clara was a mix of emotions would be an understatement. Just like before, she had no idea how she would react if she saw the Doctor again. But above all, she was a mother: her children took priority. Whatever Missy was doing, it was for their sake, Clara knew. So while Missy went to deal with the blue box, Clara dashed back to the sickbay.

Thankfully, the Human was there not ten minutes when Michelle, Gomez and Jenna finally awakened. Leading to Clara now making sure all three were fully cognisant and aware, if very tired and weak. It broke her heart seeing her angels in such a state.

But now they were awake, Clara could refocus on finding her remaining two children - and she needed Missy for that. "OK, are you listening?" she said, raising her head slightly. "I want you to put me on the external speakers so Missy can hear me."

"Mummy, why are you talking to the TARDIS?" Gomez enquired groggily. "Where's Mother?"

"Mother's just outside, darling," Clara soothed. "I'm getting her back here now, so we can properly make sure you're alright." And find Delgado and Cole. "Ready?" she said again to the time machine. A moment's pause. "Missy, the children are awake. We really need you back in here. _I_ need you back in here."

No response.

Clara's brow creased in worry. "Missy?" Nothing. "You can't be serious," she directed to ceiling. "_Really_? You're going to disobey _now_?"

"Mummy… ?"

Clara closed her eyes briefly in frustration. Dammit, she knew what she had to do. "Listen - stay here. Whatever happens, do not leave this room - I'm just going to go get your mother, and then we can go find your brothers." She turned to Michelle, the eldest of the three. "I mean it - keep them both _here_." Numbly, Michelle nodded, and Clara was out the door.

As she dashed through the corridors, Clara was venting at the walls. "You picked the _wrong time_ to rebel! If you're scared of your Mistress, wait 'til I'm through with you!" Deep down Clara knew it was silly - there was little or nothing she could do to hurt the TARDIS - but it still had to be put in its place. Normally she would not feel so, but with her children at stake… ?

Quickly, Clara reached the control room. She ignored the easy route it took to get there - first the time machine disobeys her, then _helps_ her? - and instead went to the console. On the monitor screen, she saw her wife holding a huge rifle, talking to someone… who, Clara could not see. "Missy? Missy, can you hear me?" The Time Lady made no movement of acknowledgement. Clara slammed her fist down on the console. "Dammit, you box of … !"

Clara then stopped, and cursed her stupidity. _Of course_ Missy could not answer: she was trying to hold something off with a gun! The Impossible Girl highly doubted the Doctor was a threat, but who knew?

If it was not for her children's welfare, Clara would not think such an irrational thought. But all she cared about right now was making sure her little ones were safe - and Missy was vital in finding Delgado and Cole. If the Doctor _was_ impeding that… well, Clara had not forgotten him abandoning her on that planet twenty years ago.

Clara stormed from the console and went to the doors - which opened on their own. Again, mixed messages from the TARDIS. But she did not care: instead, she picked up the rifle Missy left in the control room when they returned, and left the time machine. Clara rapidly strode out, and saw her wife's back…

"… serve their purpose: Clara would never leave children. At least I only have to put up with three of them now."

What? What did Missy just say?

"Three… How many did… ?"

Clara recognised the second voice, and her heart stopped. But it was shocked back into working by the next words…

"Yes, Delgado's gone and I left Cole drifting in space like the worthless little turd he was," Missy snarled. "Now _tell me where_… "

"Missy… ?"

Clara's voice was tiny, but she did not notice. Instead, all she could focus on were the words her wife - _her wife_ \- just said. How… what… but…

Slowly, Missy turned around and saw Clara, utter fear on her face. "C… Clara… "

Clara struggled to breathe. Tears poured down. All coherent thought left her. All she could do was replay the horrible, horrible words in her again and again.

Missy's eyes were fixated on Clara's. "Clara… I… "

"You… " Clara's words were almost drowned in chokes. "You… what did you… say… what did… you do… ?"

Missy raised a hand slowly. "Clara, calm down. I can… "

"Delgado and… Cole… " Clara's heart was shattered. "They're… gone… ?"

"_Clara_… "

"You let Cole… " Her whole world was gone.

"_Clara_, I… "

Just like that, her wife was gone. Clara no longer saw Missy. All she saw was the Mistress.

In one beat, Clara raised the rifle and fired…

TO BE CONTINUED


	48. Chapter 48

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 48

A rainy night. A dark street. A closed school.

The familiar grinding and churning filled the air, until the blue police box materialised within the gated-off school. The doors opened and the Doctor stepped out, just as the rain subsided. "It worked… holy roly-poly, it actually worked."

She was closely followed by Yaz and Ryan. "What do we do know?" the former asked.

"This is just like my vision," the Doctor said, gazing out in wonder. "Just like this. I was standing on the other side of the gate, and on this side… " She stopped when she saw him. Cloaked in shadow, he was barely visible, but the Time Lady _knew_ he was there.

Delgado. The _original_ Delgado.

Time seemed to stop as the two travellers stared at eachother… before Delgado broke the spell and made a dash for it. "Stop him! He can't get away!" The Doctor was immediately in hot pursuit, with Yaz and Ryan right behind. The Time Lady knew they did not have long: even this interruption would not be enough - they had to make certain Delgado _never_ came in contact with his impending family.

Delgado climbed up the school gates, but the Doctor and Ryan managed to grab hold of an ankle each. Unfortunately, Delgado kicked them both off, sending them stumbling back. "Oi!" cried Ryan as Delgado clambered over the gates to the other side. "I thought you said he'd be knackered?!"

"Adrenaline's a wonderful thing," the Doctor huffed. "Well, not at this moment. C'mon, we… " She fell silent as Yaz easily scaled the gates and almost flew up and over, twisting in such a way which left the Doctor's eyes wide. "Oh my… "

Yaz chased after the retreating Delgado, who ran across the puddled street. However, the Doctor's earlier assumption was correct, and he quickly tired, allowing Yaz to close the gap. The policewoman then threw herself forward and tackled the retreating rogue to the wet ground. Will all her weight on his already-weak form, Yaz tied Delgado in an armlock and held him down. "Consider yourself under arrest."

The Doctor and Ryan reached them and looked down. The Time Lady blinked. "Wow, that… that was really somethin', Yaz." The policewoman just blushed.

"Let me go," slurred Delgado. "Got to… got to… " He then passed out.

"You sure this is the same guy," Ryan asked. "'Cos the other version of 'im at least acted 'ard."

"This Delgado is exhausted," the Doctor explained. "He escaped a time lock, and most likely sent some kind of signal to get Missy and Clara to come to him. He was at the end of his strength. In my vision, him merging with his infant self literally took everything out of him." She then shook her head. "Anyway, no time for ramblin' now. We have to get him out of here before Missy's TARDIS turns up. I don't want him to even have the _chance_ to see Clara."

Yaz and Ryan heaved the limp form of Delgado up and together, dragged him back across the street to the school, with the Doctor leading the way. One wave of the sonic later, and the gates were open. "Could'a done that before," mumbled Ryan.

Within moments, they were back at the blue box. Delgado was hurried inside, but the Doctor took a moment to stare out, past the closed-again gates and to the street. Perhaps…

Why not? A vision was one thing, but she had not seen Clara, _truly_ seen Clara with these eyes… Just a glimpse…

_No_. The Doctor clenched her jaw. She could not allow such indulges. There was work to be done. She stepped through the TARDIS and closed the door behind her. Seconds later, it was gone… just as a young woman carrying a baby stepped out of the darkness outside the school…

TO BE CONTINUED


	49. Chapter 49

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 49

Missy stared wide-eyed, then slowly looked down at the burning hole in her chest. A final glassy glance up… then the Mistress collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut. She hit the ground with a thump.

Clara stood there, rifle smoking, body numb.

What had she done? God, what had she _done_?

She… just killed her…

Tears poured down her face as she stared at the fallen body of Missy. Unable to move, unable to speak, Clara just stared down, her mind perhaps gone.

She _shot her wife_.

Trembling, the Impossible Girl choked, unable to breathe. It was like all the life had gone from her. "Wh… what have I… what have I done… ?" Her voice was barely a whimper. She took a deep gulp, her throat feeling tight. "Oh God… oh God… "

The gun slipped from her hands and fell to the ground. Clara quickly followed, falling to her knees in the grass as she cried profusely. The realisation of what happened slowly killing her from the inside.

It was all so sudden. She was prepared to help her wife, protect their children… but when she heard Missy say those words… those awful, _impossible_ words… it was like something in Clara snapped. Or perhaps… reconnected.

Clara's mind was a jumble, an incoherent mess of thoughts. Did that really happen? Did Missy really say those things? Did she _actually_ abandon two of their children - let them _die_? Why was she dead? Why was she not regenerating? What would Clara do now? What had she been doing for the past twenty years? Was she just fooling herself for all that time? Was their entire married life a lie? How could she _shoot her wife_? Or did she just _finally_ see once again the monster the Mistress was?

All those thoughts, and many more, ran amok in Clara's head. In that very moment, she wanted to die herself. The guilt was overwhelming, but for what? For killing Missy? Or for falling for her in the first place?

Shakily, Clara reached out to the body of her wife; despite her conflict of emotions, she could not help it. They were still together for twenty years, still slept in the same bed, raised children, travelled the universe as a family. Missy was there for her when the Doctor was not, and now…

And yet… was it ever real? Or was Clara just a toy for the Mistress all along? Why would they have children if it was not real love? How could Missy _let them die_?

How could Clara _kill her_… ?

Clara sobbed openly, her face twisted in agony. Her mouth moved, but no words formed. She could not fathom anything now. How? Why? What?

Her hand drew closer to the unmoving head of Missy… but was stopped by another. "Clara."

The Impossible Girl looked up to see an impossible sight coming down into view. Taking her hand and kneeling infront of her, was…

"… Amy… ?"

An aged Amy Pond gripped Clara's hand tenderly. "It's alright… it's alright… "

Clara could not believe her eyes. After shooting her wife, she had not even comprehended anyone else there. "H… how… ?"

Tears in her own eyes, Amy bit her lip and slowly, lovingly, moved a stray hair from Clara's face. "It's a long story… but it doesn't matter now."

Clara must have gone insane. This could not be happening. Now in a full-on panic, she tried moving away. "N… no… this… this is _impossible_. This… this… what, what is going on?!"

"Baby, _please_," Amy pleaded, not letting her ex-fiancee go. "I know, I know. But it's me… it's really me." She closed her eyes, barely keeping in her own pain. "I've missed you _so much_… "

Clara just continued staring wide-eyed, unable to believe it. "No… no, it can't be… not now… why now… ?"

"Clara," breathed Amy, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything. But all that matters is that we're together again… and no matter what happens, I'm _never_ letting you go again."

Clara did not know what to think, how to feel. Part of her wanted to kill herself for what she just did. But another part needed to make sure her children were safe.

However, yet another part could not deny what was before her now. The woman she once loved with all her being, the person she thought she could never live without, yet the person she believed abandoned her when learning of her infidelity. And she was here, _now_. Kneeling infront of her, just asking to be seen…

Slowly, Clara raised a hand to a wrinkled cheek, to feel once more Amy Pond…

Her one, true…

TO BE CONTINUED


	50. Chapter 50

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 50

"OK, I think we're here."

The Doctor took a moment to gather her thoughts. This was it. This was what everything was building to. She was back where she really, _really_ hoped she would never have to go to again… yet here they were.

She turned away from the control console at her gang, her fam. Yaz was hovering over the still-unconscious Delgado, while Graham and Ryan were standing by the prone form of Mels.

The Doctor's hearts bled at the young woman's sacrifice. She gave her very life force to enable them to break the time loop Delgado created, and reach the original iteration of Missy and Clara's son - the Delgado who escaped the Time War and set all this in motion. And now it was time to return him… to set the timeline back on its correct path.

Deep down, the Time Lady knew this was the right thing to do - but she had a history of messing things up while doing the right thing. She just hoped, this time, the fallout would be minimal. She hoped it would all be like none of this happened.

But she also knew the danger if _that_ happened…

A groan from the floor gained everyone's attention, as Delgado began to stir. The Doctor glanced at Mels. "Graham, Ryan, could you get Mels to the medibay? If this doesn't work, I want to make sure she hasn't sacrificed herself… plus, I don't want Delgado to see her."

Step-grandad and step-grandson shared a look, then agreed. "Sure thing, Doc," Graham said, and he and Ryan picked up Mels' limp body and left the control room.

"If this doesn't work… ?" Yaz asked.

The Doctor sighed. "Just a precaution. Now come on, before he fully wakes." With that, she pressed a couple more buttons on the console and braced herself. "Time to go back to the Time War."

The doors opened. As it had many times in the past, the TARDIS was floating freely in space, her shielding protecting her occupants. Yaz slowly stepped to the exit, her eyes wide. "I… I don't understand… " she breathed, trying to take in the sight outside. "It's… just a wall."

The Doctor reached her side and took in the sight. Beyond them, before them, was a giant, blood red barrier, literally a wall of energy. It seemed to go on forever. "No… this is the Time War."

Yaz frowned. "What… ?"

"This is all that's left," the Doctor whispered. "You're not even seeing it properly. Your mind can't comprehend its true form. _This_… this is just your mind trying to visualise something it can't fully fathom. So all you're seein' is a wall. A huge, blocky wall."

"Incredible… " Yaz could not take her eyes off the phenomenon. "So… what d'we do know? How do we get 'im back in?"

The Doctor grit her teeth. "I don't know."

"You… you won't… " came a weak voice from behind. The two women turned to see Delgado on his knees. "You can't. I won't be stopped… "

"How'd you do it, Delgado?" the Doctor demanded. "How'd you escape? How do we get you back in the time lock?"

He looked up at them. "Go to hell."

"Apparently that's where the universe goes 'cos of you, boy!" exclaimed the Time Lady. "Obviously the universe doesn't like someone who messes around with history."

"Like you?" Delgado sneered.

"No - like _you_. Your timeline was erased, Delgado. Like countless others. The Time War was locked off for a reason. You're not the first to escape it, but you've done the worst damage by far. By removin' Amy and Clara's family, you've doomed the universe."

Delgado staggered to his feet. "Even if I knew what the hell you were talking about… I won't let you stop me. I have to get back… complete the process… "

The Doctor threw up her hands. "I'm not 'avin' this argument with you again - even if it _was_ with a different you! We put you back beyond that wall, and you never create the loop which guarantees your birth and Missy and Clara gettin' together."

"So you'll condemn my family… my brothers and sisters… from ever existing?" Delgado looked into the Doctor's eyes. "Can you do that, Doctor? Can you knowingly wipe out _children_?"

The Time Lady gulped. When she spoke, her voice was uneven. "For what's worth, Delgado, I _am_ sorry. But yes… yes I can. And I will." May Gallifrey forgive her. "For the good of the universe, your family _has_ to be erased."

Delgado's face became one of pure fury. "_NEVER AGAIN_!" With that, he lunged at the Doctor…

… and was stopped by another cross armlock by PC Khan. Yaz twisted his limb and came down with all her weight once more on the wanderer.

The Doctor struggled to catch her breath. "Yasmin Khan… you are… "

Suddenly, the TARDIS was rocked, and her shields were breached, resulting in a massive vacuum being created. Within seconds everyone in the control room was in danger of being blown out into space.

"_What's_… _what's happening_?!" screamed Yaz over the deafening "wind" as she clung onto one of the crystal pillars.

The Doctor, gripping the console tight, managed to crane her neck and look outside. An area of the Time War wall was glowing, and energy tendrils were swirling out. The vacuum was originating from a part of the wall itself. "_The time lock wants its property back_!" she yelled. "_It's tryin' to reabsorb him_… _and anythin' else it can get its mitts on_!"

Delgado was struggling to hold on, grasping the inner "porch" of the TARDIS for dear life. "_No_! _I won't go back_! _I have to live_! _My family… my FAMILY_!… _has to_… " Before he could finish, an energy tendril licked at his ankle, wrapping itself around and pulling him out until he was holding the very police doors themselves.

At the same moment, Yaz lost her grip and she flew out towards the exit. The Doctor's hearts skipped as she reached out and grabbed her best friend's hand just in time. "_I've got you_, _Yaz_! _I WON'T let you go_!" She strained to pull Yaz to her…

Meanwhile, Delgado finally lost his hold… and he was both blown and pulled away at an unforgiving speed. His screams of defiance were lost in the vacuum.

With Yaz now holding onto the console herself, the Doctor managed to reach the all-important button, and the TARDIS doors were slammed shut. The two women fell to the floor with a thud and groans.

No time to rest though: after making sure Yaz was alright, the Doctor shot to her feet and spied a monitor. Most of what she saw was static, but she knew what was happening. "It's over… it's finally over… "

Yaz groggily got to her feet. "Can… can we go now?"

With those words, the _danger_ the Doctor knew was a possibility… the one thing she feared, perhaps above all, would happen if this succeeded… might come to pass. Slowly, she turned to face her friend. "I… don't know if we can."

The policewoman frowned. "Wot? What d'you mean?"

Meanwhile, Delgado neared the Time War wall…

The Doctor gulped once more. "We've stopped Delgado… so none of this will happen. Amy and Clara will be together again. And we… "

Yaz tilted her head. "What? Doctor, what are you tryin' to say?"

"Everythin' from when Missy stole Clara wasn't meant to happen," the Doctor said. "There's no tellin' what might change as a result of the original timeline comin' back." When Yaz questioned her wordlessly, the Doctor struggled to find her voice. "We might never even meet."

Yaz just glared at her, utter disbelief on her face. "W… what… ?"

"With Missy never marryin' Clara… with my memories never bein' erased… " The Time Lady felt numb. "I have no idea how my life goes. I might never meet Bill… Nardole… I might never regenerate above Sheffield… and I might never meet you, Graham and Ryan."

Delgado continued towards the wall…

"Then… " Yaz's lip wobbled. "… what would happen to us?"

The Doctor struggled to hold back tears. "You'd go back to your lives. You… you won't ever get caught up with me. You'll carry on and live your lives on Earth. _Normal_ lives." She cleared her throat. "Gr… Grace will probably live too… and you'll become the best officer in the Sheffield force." She managed a pained smile. "I… I know you will."

Yaz shook her head vehemently. "No. No no no. That can't happen. That _can't_. It _won't_. I know we'll still be with you."

"There's no way to know," the Doctor breathed.

"We need you," interrupted Yaz, crying profusely. "_I_ need you!" Utter desperation was written on her face.

Delgado tried in vain to break free…

The Doctor bit her lip. "Yasmin Khan… "

"_I'm in love with you_!"

There it was, finally said.

The Doctor could not help the tear trickling down her cheek. "Quite right t'be." The two stared into eachothers' eyes, the Doctor's heartbroken at the agony in Yaz's. "And I guess... there won't be much cha... "

She stopped. No - she would not make the same mistake. Not again - not _this time_.

The Doctor grabbed Yaz's face and dove her head forward, pressing their lips together in a searing kiss. Instinctively, Yaz wrapped her arms around the Time Lady's neck.

The kiss intensified, both trying desperately to release all their pent-up frustration, desire and _need_.

Delgado hurtled ever closer to the wall.

The Doctor and Yaz pulled themselves against eachother, their kiss never breaking.

Delgado screamed as he hit the barrier...

Graham and Ryan dashed back into the control room, only to stop at the sight meeting them…

Still the Doctor and Yaz remained connected...

Delgado was fully enveloped into the wall...

And then…

TO BE CONTINUED


	51. Chapter 51

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

* * *

PART 51

"Doctor… Doctor… ?"

Hazel eyes slowly fluttered open, as the voice softly spoke. The Doctor blinked as she awakened, and found herself looking up at someone she had not seen - not _truly_ seen - for so, _so_ long.

"Clara… "

Clara Oswald smiled down at the horizontal Time Lady, a brow raised. "Could you get up, please? We kinda need the sofa."

The Doctor could not believe it. Her eyes were wide, her jaw hanging open, as she simply took in the woman above her. "Clara… _Clara_… " Pushing herself up, the Doctor got to her feet, eyes never leaving the woman who roused her. She continued staring disbelievingly, as Clara's frown deepened.

Then, suddenly, the Doctor grabbed Clara and enveloped her in a deep embrace. She held the Human tight, terrified this was not real, that this was a dream. She wanted to hold onto her Impossible Girl for as long as possible, after so long apart.

"Um… Doctor… are you alright?" came Clara's unsure voice.

Reluctantly, the Time Lady let the woman go slightly, focusing on her round, beautiful face. "My God… Clara… it's… it's really you… "

Clara looked extremely puzzled. "Er… yeah. Last time I checked. You feeling alright? I know you don't sleep much… do you always act weird when getting up?" She then gasped lightly. "Doctor, what is it?"

With that, the Gallifreyan felt the liquid on her cheek, and cleared her throat. "Um… um, nothing. J… just… " It was only then she noticed their surroundings. They were in a flat. Clara's flat. Clara and…

"Is everything OK?" came a Scottish accent from behind.

The Doctor spun around to see Amy Pond enter the room. But not the Amy she expected. This Amy was… young. Just like the Doctor remembered.

With a silent choke, realisation hit the Time Lady like a sledgehammer. The time loop. Delgado. Old Amy. Mels. The time lock. _Delgado_.

She did it. _They_ did it. Everything that happened… Missy stealing Clara, Delgado changing time, the golden cracks… it was all…

"I don't know," Clara said to Amy's question. She turned back to their alien friend. "Doctor?"

"How much did you have yesterday?"

"Your the one who let her in the drinks cabinet."

Amy shrugged. "It was a party."

"Party?" the Doctor blurted. She then blinked and realised something else. Her voice. It… she quickly checked her clothing, patting her trousers and opening her coat… checking her hair. She was unchanged. She was still the same blonde, rainbow-shirt-wearing, northern-accented woman she last regenerated into. That, at least, had not changed.

Clara rolled her eyes. "A _children's_ party, Amy. Honestly."

"A children's… " the Doctor's question was left unfinished as she heard pattering of small feet nearing. From the same doorway Amy emerged from, a young girl appeared, and the Doctor, despite the adolescent form, recognised her immediately.

"Morning Mummy, morning Mum, morning Uncle Do… _sorry_, _Aunty_ Doctor." The girl grinned and waved madly.

"Good morning, Mels," smiled Amy. "Is your sister awake yet?"

The girl - looking pre-teen in Human years - shook her head. "Do you want me check?"

"Would you, sweetheart?" Clara said. "If she's not though, don't wake her up. River had a busy day yesterday."

"OK, Mum!" With that, little Mels bounded back the way she came.

The Doctor just stood there, dumbfounded. She then noticed the flat indeed had remnants of a party in its decor… not least of which the giant _Happy 1st Birthday River_ banner bordering the patio door to the garden. Outside on the grass, the TARDIS was parked, waiting patiently as always.

"Oh my God… " the Time Lady breathed. She could feel another tear trickle down.

It worked. It _really worked_.

"Doctor, _are_ you alright?" said Clara. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Did you have a nightmare or something?" added Amy, coming unto them.

The Doctor blinked a few times at the two young women before her. "You… you could say that." It was then she was able to get a good look at their hands…

She had to stifle the sob at the sight of the wedding rings.

"Who had a nightmare?"

The three women turned to see three people enter the living room. "You OK, Doc?"

The Time Lady closed her eyes and let out a _massive_ sigh of relief. Her gang, her fam was intact. Graham, Ryan… and Yaz.

Being a Time Lord, the Doctor's mind instantly caught up to everything. She realised, shockingly, she had _two_ sets of memories. She still remembered the unholy union of Missy and Clara, and Amy being stuck in the past; remembered that she _forgot_ them… but also now recalled a beautiful wedding. A young Gallifreyan girl being orphaned, then adopted. A series of incidents and interferences leading to a pregnant Amy giving birth to a Gallifreyan-Human "hybrid". All that… and the Doctor still met Bill and Nardole, still regenerated over Sheffield, still met her three latest best friends.

Either the two timelines merged somehow… or, probably, they were far more parallel than the Gallifreyan thought. It seemed, despite the changes Delgado instigated, a lot of the Doctor's personal timeline would have gone the same way regardless. But now, finally, everything seemed…

How it should be.

The rest of the morning was surreal, to say the least. River was indeed awake, and breakfast consisted of the remnants of yesterday's birthday cake. The Doctor, despite her shellshocked state, managed to put a brave face on and get through talks with Amy and Clara, all the while internally doing somersaults at their happiness. Graham and Ryan were their usual selves, and little Mels was wonderful with her one-year-old sister.

And it was surreal enough knowing again exactly _who_ River was to the Doctor…

Only Yaz seemed out-of-sorts. The Time Lady noticed, obviously. That was just one of the reasons she decided to call it a day before _mid_day, and insist she and the gang return to the TARDIS. Leading to them all now in the garden, preparing to separate.

"You sure you can't stay?" Mels asked sadly. "Uncle Rory said he'll be back this afternoon. I thought we could all go out again."

"Maybe… another time," the Doctor said. Frankly, she was emotionally exhausted. Despite her mind gaining clarity by the minute, she still could do with sometime in the Zero Room to properly sort everything out.

"Well, you know where we are," said Clara. "The Oswald-Ponds will be ever-waiting for the great Doctor to drop in."

"Literally," smirked Amy, causing Mels to giggle.

"I'll be back," the Doctor said resolutely. "I promise. I'll never abandon you." Ever again.

"OK, now I'm sure something's up," Clara said. "Is there something going on?"

"Or are you just showing off again?" quipped the Scot, earning her a light nudge from her wife… _her wife_.

"No, I promise you," said the Doctor slowly, "everything's fine." Those last two words where said with a huge, unbridled grin. After that, final - but never _final_ \- goodbyes were made, and the Time Lady and the trio from Sheffield entered the blue police box. Seconds later, they were gone from London, 2019.

It took only a few moments for Graham to dramatically yawn. "_Well_, I dunno 'bout you, but I think I 'ad too much cake. Gonna go take a nap."

"It's midday, Grandad," mocked Ryan.

"You'll understand when y'get t'my age, son." He then exited the console room down the corridor. Ryan followed, muttering something about the SegAmiga PlayTendo Box. Leaving just the Doctor and Yaz.

The Doctor could feel the young woman's eyes boring into her from behind. But frankly, she did not want to face her right now. The Time Lady still had so much to sort out. Namely, Delgado and his fate.

Despite knowing it had to be done, the Doctor felt great guilt at what was sacrificed. After all, regardless of his budding insanity, Delgado _was_ just trying to get his family back. In his position, the Doctor might very well have done the same thing. No matter how hard she tried moving on, the Time War just continued haunting her. She prayed that would be the last remnant she had to deal with.

As cold as that thought was. Indeed, a part of her hated herself for what had to be done: she was willing to wipe out an entire family. Despite the situation ultimately being taken out of her hands, the Doctor _meant_ what she told Delgado - she _would_ have done whatever it took to get him back inside the time lock. Not just for the adult Mels' prophecy of doom, but the cracks in time…

The presence of one of the glowing anomalies at the original Delgado's resting spot when he merged with his infant self… there was no logical reason, but the Doctor just _knew_ with absolute certainty, when she witnessed that in the vision - he was indeed the cause of them. His amount of time meddling, the paradox he created was simply too much for the universe to handle; there _had_ to be a side-effect. And for whatever reason - perhaps because it involved Delgado merging his memories with his infant form - it manifested in glowing cracks in reality, slowly erasing peoples' memories and, eventually, physical matter. Left unchecked, there was no telling how much damage they could have wrought.

And as for Mels' warning, her insistence of a far-off crisis, and River's role in stopping it? That, like much in the Doctor's lives, would just have to wait for time to tell…

"Doctor?"

Sighing, the Gallifreyan slowly turned and saw Yaz Khan standing there, looking unsure. Looking like a certain cliche. Because there was one final elephant the Doctor had yet to dwell on… but it looked like she would get no reprieve.

In those final moments outside the time lock, when she was scared - no, _terrified_ her time with her fam would be undone, the Doctor did something. She acted on something she felt, yet skirted around, for a long time.

She knew Yaz was in love with her. Any fool could see that. But the policewoman brought feelings out of the Time Lady long buried.

She tried ignoring it, really she tried. But as happened with increasing frequency these past few regenerations, her feelings won out. For centuries - _centuries_! - she never felt emotionally connected to her travelling companions. Not like _that_. She loved them all dearly, of course, but never allowed herself…

But since Rose… no, before her. Grace. Then later, Elizabeth. And of course, River. All broke their way into the Doctor's hearts like none before them. And none of _them_ did so like…

Even the Doctor's first great love, dear Patience…

None compared to Yaz. Everything about her just… the Doctor could not find the words. She was perfect. Utterly perfect.

The simple fact was, the Doctor was in love with Yasmin Khan.

Which made _right now_ incredibly heartwrenching. The Doctor took a deep breath before speaking. "What is it, Yaz?"

Yaz shuffled her feet. "I had the strangest dream… only… I don't know… "

"What don't you know?" Please, don't say…

"You're gonna think I'm crazy… "

The weakness in Yaz's eyes and voice overrode the Doctor's own awkwardness. "Never. What is it?"

Suddenly, there was a certainty in the policewoman's eyes. The same certainty which drew the Doctor in months ago, the fiery self-belief she found intoxicating. "I remember."

The Doctor held her breath.

"Everything."

A trademark gulp.

Yaz bit her lip. "It's weird… I remember you tellin' us about Amy and Clara, about their wedding, them adoptin' Mels… I remember River's birthday yesterday. But… I also remember meeting Amy in a '70s pub, looking old… I remember a crazy guy ranting about bringing his family back. Del… Delgado."

The Doctor stood silent, letting Yaz get it out.

"I remember… " She seemed at a loss for words. "I remember… _forgetting_ Grace. God, how could I forget Grace? I remember these bright, glowing cracks… Bein' trapped with his psycho woman in a basement or something… " She shook her head in disbelief. "I remember meeting Clara months ago in her home with Amy, yet also _never_ meeting her, instead gettin' into a stupid fight with an old Amy in the medibay." Yaz took a breath. "And I also remember a wall, a big barrier in space." She held her head in frustration. "I know it sounds insane, but… something in me… in my _soul_… tells me it wasn't just a dream. That it was real… " With that, she finally fell quiet.

The Doctor gulped once more, trying to take it all in. She realised what this meant, and seeing the confusion in her dear Yaz's face, she had to assure her. "It was, Yaz." Her voice was a whisper. "You were with me when… you… saw the time lock. Being in such close proximity must've let you keep the memories." Or maybe she remembered because _the Doctor_ remembered, and they were in… _well_, physical contact when…

Yaz looked worried. "Why now?"

The Doctor managed a shrug. "Maybe 'cos… this is the point in time the change happened, and we just happened t'be in a different point in space."

"Will… will these memories stay?"

The Doctor sighed. "I honestly don't know. Our minds might simply forget the corrupted timeline's events so that we don't go insane." Yaz's mind, anyway: the Doctor might carry the parallel memories forever.

Yaz seemed to accept that, nodding her head slowly. The Time Lady thought that was the end of it, until the young woman spoke again. "I also remember… what happened. What… what _we_ did… "

Of course. The Doctor should have known. Fear and uncertainty filled her.

Yaz once again looked at her with complete determination, which the Doctor could not shy away from. "I think… we should talk."

The Doctor was silent for a beat. If what she theorised was correct, she could just wait it out and hope for Yaz's memory to realign. But looking at her now, at the woman she… the woman she _loved_… could the Doctor be that…

Cruel and cowardly?

After one more deep breath, the Doctor found her voice. "Yeah… maybe we should."

TO BE CONCLUDED


	52. Chapter 52

_DISCLAIMERS/NOTES_

_1\. This is a fan fiction based on characters owned by the BBC. I DO NOT OWN THEM. This is just for fun._

_2\. This is a femslash story. If you don't like that sort of thing, you won't like this._

_3\. For story notes, see Part 1._

_4\. So, this is it. The end of my _Doctor Who_ saga. I hope you've enjoyed it. It's certainly been an experience for me. I think I'll have to take a little rest after this. But with all that said, this isn't the last _DW_ story - not by a long shot._

* * *

PART 52

A flash of light, and he was there.

Taking a quick intake of breath, he blinked. Falling to his knees, he closed his eyes as he regained his strength. After a few moments, he slowly raised his head.

He had no idea where - or when - he was. He looked around, taking in his surroundings. Seemed a bog-standard warehouse; even in his short life, he had seen his share of them. Probably disused, judging by the dust, cobwebs and lack of lighting.

No electricity - if it was not for the moonlight through the windows, he would be in pitch black. Rather apt, he thought. Taking a final suck of air, he raised to his feet and staggered to the door. However, once he reached the cold nighttime street, he felt an overwhelming sense of dread come over him. Unable to see, hear or telepathically sense anything, he knew his situation was grim.

He had nothing. No supplies, no equipment, no mode of transportation. No TARDIS, no vortex manipulator. Wherever and whenever he was, he was stuck.

He closed his eyes briefly, despair overwhelming him. He nearly died escaping his captivity, and it was all for nothing. Everything was lost to him. His parents, his siblings, his home… they were all gone.

Cole Masters-Oswald was completely alone…

THE END


End file.
